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LIBRARY    OF    THE    THEOLOGICAL    SEMINARY 

PRINCETON.     N.    J. 
PRESENTED  BY 

PRINCSTOil  UNIVERSITY  LIBRARY 

BV  1561  .C6  1918 
Cobb,  Cora  Stanwood. 
God's  wonder  world 


THE   BEACON  PRESS   PUBLICATIONS 
IN   RELIGIOUS  EDUCATION 


THE  BEACON  COURSE 
OF  GRADED  LESSONS 

William  I.  Lawrance 
Florence  Buck 

Editors. 


GOD^S  WONDER  WORLD 

/  would  seek  unto  God,  .  .  . 
Who  doeth  great  things  and  unsearchable, 
Marvellous  things  without  number. 

Job  5:8,  9 


GOD'S 
WONDER   WORLD 


A  Manual 

for  Religious  Instruction 

in  Junior  Grades 

ESPECIALI.Y    FOR    PUPILS 
NINE    YEARS    OLD 


BY 


/ 


CORA  STANWOOD  COBB,  A.B. 


THE  BEACON  PRESS 

25   BEACON   STREET 
BOSTON,  MASS. 


Copyright,  1918, 
By  The  Beacon  Press,  Inc. 


All  rights  reserved 


THE    university  PRESS,  CAMBRIDGE,   U.S.A. 


TO    MY   FATHER 

DARIUS  COBB 

WHOSE  DEEP  LOVE  OF  NATURE  AND 
APPRECIATION  OF  ITS  BEAUTY  AND 
GRANDEUR  IS  THE  WELL  FROM  WHICH 
I  HAVE  DRUNK  FROM  MY  EARLIEST 
CHILDHOOD 


Editors'  Preface 

The  Beacon  Course  in  Religious  Education,  to 
which  this  book  belongs,  provides  a  manual  for  each 
year  for  pupils  from  four  to  twenty-one  years  of  age. 
Its  purpose  throughout  is  to  guide  those  who  use  it 
into  noble  and  serviceable  manhood  and  womanhood. 
This  it  aims  to  do  by  acquainting  them  with  the 
religious  aspects  of  nature  and  of  social  relations, 
quickening  in  them  at  the  same  time  an  earnest 
desire  to  serve  their  day  and  generation.  In  such  a 
training,  knowledge  of  the  world  in  which  we  live,  its 
origin  and  its  laws,  is  of  evident  importance. 

A  study  of  nature  seems  peculiarly  fitting  to 
pupils  entering  upon  tife  Junior  period.  They  have 
come  to  that  stage  in  their  development  when  im- 
agination begins  to  give  place  to  observation,  and 
desire  is  quickened  to  know  the  world  as  it  actually 
is.  That  world  they  will  in  some  fashion  come  to 
know.  It  is  the  privilege  and  therefore  the  obligation 
of  the  teachers  of  religion  to  see  that  the  first  im- 
pressions children  get  of  the  marvelous  world  in 
which  they  live  are  religious  impressions,  and  that 
the  habit  of  associating  things  seen  and  physical 
with  things  unseen  and  spiritual  is  formed  early  in 
life. 

The  book  here  offered  is  intended  for  use  with 
pupils  nine  years  of  age.    It  can  be  used  with  those 


EDITORS'   PREFACE 

somewhat  older,  and  students  of  whatever  age  will 
find  it  instructive  and  suggestive.  Whoever  delights, 
with  Kepler,  to  ''read  God's  thoughts  after  Him" 
discovers  in  a  reverent  study  of  nature  food  for  mind 
and  spirit.  In  the  pursuit  of  the  infinite  and  eternal 
forces  and  processes,  differences  of  a  few  years  cease 
to  be  of  importance,  and  the  student  finds  himself, 
in  Higginson's  fine  phrase,  of  the  age  of  everybody. 
If  this  book  helps  our  children  to  enter  into  the  treas- 
ures of  the  world,  to  see  everywhere  in  earth  and  sky 
reminders  of  divine  power  and  love,  and  to  tread  the 
earth  habitually  with  reverent  feet,  the  purpose  for 
which  it  has  been  prepared,  as  of  the  Course  of  which 
it  is  a  part,  will  have  been  accomplished. 

The  Editors. 


Author's  Preface 

Regarding  the  education  of  the  young,  Huxley 
strongly  advised  that  children  of  the  ages  of  nine 
and  ten  should  be  instructed  in  the  infinite  wonder 
and  majesty  of  the  works  of  God,  and  that  the  in- 
struction should  be  given  upon  Sunday,  side  by 
side  with  the  lessons  from  the  Bible. 

The  author  has  attempted  to  follow  out  the  plan 
advocated  by  Huxley,  and  she  offers  this  book  with 
the  earnest  hope  that  these  stories  will  ''awaken  the 
minds  of  the  young  to  the  infinite  wonder  and 
majesty  of  the  works  which  are  proclaimed  His,  and 
teach  them  those  laws  which  must  needs  be  His 
laws  and  therefore  of  all  things  most  needful  for 
man  to  know."  ^ 

The  children  who  begin  their  observation  of 
nature  in  this  way  may  well  be  among  those  who 
will  take  honors  in  Nature's  university;  for  accord- 
ing to  Huxley's  belief,  ''those  who  take  honors  in 
Nature's  university,  who  learn  the  laws  which 
govern  men  and  things  and  obey  them;  are  the 
really  great  and  successful  men  in  the  world."  ^ 

Great  men  and  women  are  what  the  world  is  call- 
ing for,  but  before  the  man  or  woman  can  become 
great  the  child  must  have  been  started  upon  the 
right  road. 

1  Lay  Sermons,  Addresses,  and  Reviews,  1871. 


AUTHOR'S  PREFACE 

The  author  wishes  to  express  her  thanks  to  Miss 
AUce  M.  Barton,  an  experienced  teacher  of  nature 
studies  in  the  Boston  pubUc  schools,  for  reading  the 
completed  manuscript  and  making  valuable  sugges- 
tions. Thanks  are  due  to  Enos  A.  Mills,  Dr.  A. 
Howard  Clark,  W.  A.  Bentley,  Prof.  Alexander 
McAdie  and  the  Blue  Hill  Observatory,  Mrs.  C.  H. 
McL.  Burns,  Rev.  Joel  H.  Metcalf,  Prof.  E.  S.  Dana 
and  John  Wiley  and  Sons,  Inc.,  publishers  of  his 
book;  to  the  American  Museum  of  Natural  History, 
United  States  Geological  Survey,  and  many  others 
who  have  lent  the  photographs  which  are  used  in 
the  leaflets  which  accompany  this  volume;  and  to 
the  Comstock  Publishing  Company,  Raymond  and 
Whitcomb  Company  and  Ginn  and  Company  for 
the  use  of  cuts. 

Cora  Stanwood  Cobb. 

Newton  Upper  Falls,  Mass. 
August,  1918 


CONTENTS 

Page 

Purpose  and  Plan  of  the  Course xi 

Suggestions  to  the  Teacher xiv 

The  Child  of  Nine xvi 

The  Memory  Work xix 

Books  for  the  Teacher xxi 

Part  I 
THE  WORLD   IN   WHICH   WE   LIVE 

Lesson 

I      Beauty  in  God's  World  :  The  Clouds     .  3 

II      Earth's  Garment  of  Green 10 

III  The  Blossoming  Plants 18 

IV  Plants  Sowing  their  Seeds      26 

V      The  Trees 34 

VI      How  Plants  Live  Together     ....'.  42 

VII      The  Earth  Our  Storehouse 51 

Part  II 

ANIMALS   AND   INSECTS 

VIII      The  Ants     .    .    .   , 61 

IX      The  Spider 70 

X     The  Bees 78 

XI      Moths  and  Butterflies 87 

XII      Toads,  Bats  and  Owls 97 

.  XIII      Humble  Helpers 106 

XIV     The  Birds 114 

XV      Animal  Friends 122 

XVI      The  Dog 131 

XVII      Beavers 140 

ix 


CONTENTS 

Part  III 
THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

Lesson  Page 

XVIII        As    IT   WAS   IN    THE    BEGINNING      ...  151 

XIX      The  Work  of  the  Rain 158 

XX      The  Work  of  the  Rain  :  Brooks  and 

Rivers 166 

XXI      Snow,  Ice  and  Frost 174 

XXII      Minerals  and  Crystals 182 

XXIII  Earth's   Underground   Storehouse  191 

XXIV  God's  Wonderful  Mountains  .    .    .  199 
XXV      Life  Comes  upon  the  World  .    .    .  207 

XXVI      Fossils 214 

XXVII      How  Our  Coal  was  Made    ....  222 

XXVIII      More  Wonders  from  Nature's  Book  231 
XXIX      The  Story  that  a  Scratched  Rock 

Tells 239 


Part  IV 

THE  COMING   OF  MAN 

XXX      Man  Comes  upon  the  Earth  .    .    .  249 
XXXI      Man's  Progress  :  The  Working  Hands 

and  Thinking  Mind 257 

XXXII      Man's  Progress:  Growth  in  Religion  265 

XXXIII  Man's  Progress:  The  Written  Word  273 

XXXIV  The  Story  of  Steam 281 

XXXV      The  Story  of  Electricity    ....  288 

XXXVI      Searchers  after  Nature's  Truths  297 

XXXVII      God's  Gift  of  Sunlight 306 

XXXVIII      The  Solar  System 314 

XXXIX      The  Stars 322 

XL      The  Torch  Bearers 330 


Introduction 

Purpose  and  Plan  of  the  Course 

The  aim  in  preparing  this  course  of  lessons  has 
been  to  make  a  direct  appeal  to  those  faculties  of 
perception,  curiosity,  and  wonder  which  are  begin- 
ning to  assert  themselves  in  the  child  of  nine;  to 
foster  these  faculties,  already  active  in  some  children, 
and  to  arouse  them  in  others;  to  open  their  eyes  to 
some  of  the  marvels  of  the  universe ;  to  impress  their 
minds  with  the  idea  of  its  law  and  order;  and  to 
arouse  in  their  hearts  a  response  to  the  divine  love 
manifested  in  the  world  in  which  we  live. 

'' Wherever  it  may  look,  the  young  mind  is  im- 
pressed with  the  mystery  of  the  unknown.  The 
child  looks  out  to  Nature  with  great  eyes  of  wonder."  ^ 
It  is  this  wonder  which  directs  the  growing  intelli- 
gence of  the  child.  It  gives  the  perception  some- 
thing to  work  upon,  and  the  reason  something  to  do. 
It  urges  attention  and  interest  on  to  what  is  unknown. 

These  lessons,  therefore,  have  been  arranged  in 
such  a  way  as  to  proceed  from  what  the  child  has 
already  perceived  to  what  he  must  look  for.  Accord- 
ingly, Part  I  deals  with  the  trees,  plants  and  flowers 
that  every  child  has  seen  and  knows;  Part  II,  with 
insect  and  animal  life,  of  which  the  child  has  known 

1  The  Nature-Study  Idea.     By  L.  H.  Bailey, 
xi 


xii  INTRODUCTION 

in  a  vague  way,  but  which  through  study  he  will  now 
learn  to  observe  more  carefully;  Part  III,  with  the  — 
to  him  —  unknown  wonders  of  Geology;  and  Part  IV, 
with  the  history  of  mankind,  in  a  series  of  stories 
which  should  open  his  eyes  to  the  vast  possibilities 
in  the  life  of  each  individual  and  in  the  life  of  the 
race.  In  this  last  section  of  the  book,  which  describes 
man's  first  appearance  upon  the  earth  and  follows  his 
material  progress  as  well  as  his  mental  and  spiritual 
growth,  the  lessons  in  Astronomy  are  included,  be- 
cause the  knowledge  of  that  science  shows,  perhaps 
more  than  any  of  the  others,  the  growth  and  power 
of  man's  mind. 

The  lessons  in  Parts  I  and  II  are  designed  not  alone 
to  teach  children  some  important  facts,  but  to  show 
them  those  facts  in  such  a  way  as  to  win  respect  for 
the  forms  of  hfe  which  all  human  beings,  children  as 
well  as  older  people,  are  accustomed  to  think  of  as 
beneath  them.  Whatever  the  child  learns  to  look 
upon  with  affectionate  interest  he  will  treat  with 
respect.  Trees,  plants  and  flowers,  as  well  as  insects 
and  animals,  will  not  only  receive  protection  from 
him  but,  quite  unconsciously  perhaps,  he  wdll  take 
them  into  his  daily  life  as  friends.  This  friendly  feel- 
ing for  nature  in  her  different  aspects  will  broaden 
and  deepen  his  whole  being  and  help  him  to  become 
one  with  God  in  spirit. 

The  story  of  the  formation  of  the  earth  and  of  the 
coming  of  life  as  told  in  Part  III  may  yield  a  lifetime 
of  happiness  and  of  religious  faith  to  the  student.  He 
will  learn  with  amazement  that  such  familiar  forces 
as  the  rain  and  the  frost  have  been  used  to  build  the 


INTRODUCTION  xiii 

majestic  mountains  and  to  fit  the  globe  for  life. 
Attention  to  the  most  ordinary  features  of  his  sur- 
roundings should  make  the  child  reverent  toward  the 
earth  on  which  he  lives,  and  lead  him  to  worship  the 
Power  and  Love  that  formed  it. 

Part  IV  deals  with  the  broader  moral  questions 
of  the  duties  which  all  those  of  the  human  race, 
gifted  above  God's  other  creatures,  owe  to  them- 
selves, the  world  and  their  Maker.  It  is  intended 
to  point  out  to  the  children  the  slow  steps  by  which 
the  race  of  mankind  has  moved  onward,  to  im- 
press upon  them,  also,  the  fact  that  increase  in 
physical  comfort  does  not  mean  race  advancement, 
unless  [there  goes  with  it  a  corresponding  progress 
in  mental  and  spiritual  life. 

Children  of  nine  or  ten  are  not  too  young  to  learn 
something  of  the  value  of  life,  and  to  understand  how 
much  the  thought  of  one  person  can  help  the  whole 
race  of  mankind,  and  so  God's  world. 

The  subjects  treated  in  this  book  are  so  vast  and 
comprehensive  that  they  can  merely  be  touched 
upon.  Only  a  series  of  pictures,  as  it  were,  can  be 
shown  the  children;  but  it  is  hoped  that  the  pictures 
are  vivid  enough  to  awaken  their  interest  and  wonder 
and  to  encourage  them  in  the  use  of  their  own  '^seeing 
eyes.'' 

If  one  child  should  be  led  by  these  lessons  to  use 
his  eyes  and  mind  in  such  a  way  as  to  become  a  world- 
helper,  the  study  and  love  of  a  lifetime  which  have 
gone  to  make  this  book  will  not  have  been  in  vain. 


xiv  INTRODUCTION 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

As  the  stories  which  form  these  lessons  deal  with 
scientific  facts,  where  accuracy  is  essential,  the 
teacher  is  advised  to  read  them  to  the  class.  But  it 
is  important  to  prepare  for  the  reading  as  earnestly 
as  if  the  story  were  to  be  told  in  the  teacher's  own 
language.  The  word  pictures  which  the  stories  con- 
tain should  be  given  in  as  vivid  a  manner  as  possible, 
that  they  may  call  up  in  the  mind  of  the  child  a 
correspondingly  vivid  picture.  It  is  by  these  mental 
images  that  interest  will  best  be  aroused. 

The  questions  in  the  lesson  story  should  be  asked 
as  spontaneously  as  if  they  had  just  occurred  to  the 
teacher.  Where  they  relate  to  some  familiar  fact, 
answers  may  be  secured  from  the  class  before  pro- 
ceeding with  the  reading  if  desired.  Sometimes  the 
purpose  of  a  question  is  to  focus  attention  on  the  new 
fact  or  truth  which  is  to  be  stated,  to  which  the  read- 
ing should  proceed  without  pause,  so  that  the 
teacher  answers  the  question  in  the  words  of  the 
lesson  story. 

It  would  be  well  before  attempting  to  teach  any  of 
these  lessons,  to  read  all  the  stories  in  this  manual  so 
as  to  be  cognizant  of  its  scope.  One  should  at  least  be 
familiar  with  all  the  stories  in  each  part  before 
attempting  to  teach  the  first  lesson  in  that  part. 
Especially  is  this  true  of  the  section  that  deals  with 
Geology  (Lessons  18  to  29) ;  for  the  teacher  who  has 
not  grasped  the  picture  of  the  changing  world  as  a 
whole  cannot  well  teach  it  in  part. 

Many  of  the  illustrations  in  Part  I  are  drawn  from 


INTRODUCTION  xv 

the  plants  and  trees  of  New  England ;  but  in  localities 
where  these  are  not  found  teachers  will  substitute 
others  which  will  fit  into  the  lesson  story. 

In  connection  with  the  lessons  in  Part  III  the 
teacher  should  become  acquainted  with  the  native 
rock  of  the  locality,  and  any  interesting  geological 
feature  to  be  observed.  Whatever  the  country  rock 
is  —  conglomerate,  sandstone,  slate,  limestone, 
marble,  granite,  gneiss,  schist  —  it  should  be  shown 
to  the  children  and  they  should  be  taught  to  know 
it.  Where  measurements  are  given,  refer  for  com- 
parison to  some  object  or  distance  well  known  to 
the  pupils. 

It  is  intended  that  the  memory  verse  should  be 
read  to  the  class  at  the  beginning  of  the  lesson  and 
learned  at  the  close.  The  pupils  will  also  have  it  in 
the  leaflet  for  constant  reference. 

The  handwork  wdll  usually  be  done  at  home  during 
the  week,  but  should  always  be  asked  for  and  ex- 
amined at  the  beginning  of  each  Sunday's  lesson,  and 
referred  to  from  time  to  time. 

Making  collections  is  a  fundamental  instinct  with 
children  of  this  age,  and  is  a  most  important  help  in 
the  development  of  their  minds.  William  James 
says  that  children  form  a  kinship  with  the  world 
through  handling  and  arranging  what  they  have  thus 
gathered.  Therefore  the  teacher  should  encourage 
them  to  make  the  suggested  collections  and  should 
show  decided  interest  in  the  results. 

After  the  teacher  has  examined  the  work  done  by 
the  pupils  during  the  week,  either  by  questions  about 
their  collections  and  observation,  or  by  examination 


xvi  INTRODUCTION 

of  their  work  on  the  leaflet,  it  is  well  to  review 
briefly  the  lesson  of  the  preceding  Sunday.  Some  of 
the  questions  furnished  are  intended  to  be  a  guide 
in  this  review.  Any  method  of  review  which  seems 
advisable  to  the  teacher  should  be  used,  making  sure 
that  the  children  have  a  correct  idea  of  those  sub- 
jects which  the  questions  cover. 

Throughout  this  whole  course  of  lessons  the 
teacher  should  work  to  stimulate  curiosity  and  won- 
der in  the  children  of  the  class,  and  to  arouse  such 
eager  interest  in  the  natural  objects  about  them  that 
the  perceptive  faculties  will  be  quickened.  Thus  the 
children  will  gain  the  ability  to  look  at  nature  with 
''seeing  eyes,"  and  a  deep  moral  and  religious  feeling 
toward  God's  wonder  world  will  develop  of  itself  in 
their  hearts  and  minds. 


The  Child  of  Nine 

As  the  child  nears  the  age  of  nine,  the  vivid  imagi- 
nation which  seemed  to  dominate  his  mind  during  the 
preceding  years  begins  to  give  way  to  a  more  active 
interest  in  what  is  going  on  around  him.  The  world 
of  fact,  which  has  been  more  or  less  obscured  by  his 
own  fancy,  has  gradually  become  more  apparent  to 
his  growing  intelligence.  His  curiosity  is  aroused  as 
he  looks  with  questioning  wonder  upon  those  very 
things  that,  but  recently,  furnished  his  imagination 
with  fanciful  stories.  His  eyes  are  opened  to  the  re- 
ality of  the  world  in  which  he  lives,  and  his  mind  is 
full  of  questions  concerning  the  why  and  wherefore 
of  every  thing  he  sees,  —  questions  which  are  some- 


INTRODUCTION  xvii 

times  asked  outright,  but  are  often  revolved  over 
and  over  before  they  are  given  voice. 

The  child  is  learning  to  think.  The  interest,  curi- 
osity and  wonder  that  gradually  supersede  the  im- 
agination are  a  part  of  that  thought  growth  which 
leads  to  reason.  In  his  limited  way  the  child 
reasons  about  whatever  excites  his  wonder.  Those 
objects  that  had  existed  for  him  before  in  a  world 
of  fancy  belong  now  to  the  real  world  in  which  he 
lives. 

Moreover,  the  child  at  this  age  must  know  the 
truth.  He  is  not  content  to  be  put  ofT  with  a  hasty 
answer  that  does  not  satisfy  his  mind.  Indeed,  many 
children  of  nine  have  developed  a  reasoning  power 
not  suspected  by  their  elders,  because  children  so 
young  have  not  yet  learned  to  express  their  thoughts 
clearly. 

The  growing  minds  of  these  children  should  be 
most  carefully  fostered.  This  may  be  accomplished 
not  only  by  interested  and  truthful  answers  to  their 
questions,  but  by  so  guiding  their  newly  awakened 
faculty  of  perception  that  they  will  observe  correctly 
those  things  which  have  awakened  their  interest. 

In  no  other  way  can  this  be  accomplished  with  so 
much  lasting  benefit  to  the  child  as  by  the  study  of 
nature.  The  natural  objects  which  he  sees  on  his 
way  to  and  from  school,  if  carefully  observed,  will 
furnish  a  legitimate  field  for  his  newly  developed 
faculties  of  observation,  curiosity  and  wonder.  The 
training  thus  given  to  the  powers  of  observation  will 
often  turn  an  apparently  dull  child  into  a  bright  and 
alert  boy  or  girl. 


xviii  INTRODUCTION 

Nine,  then,  is  a  crucial  age,  when  the  dawning 
wonder  of  the  child's  newly  awakened  curiosity 
can  be  so  fostered  through  the  close  observation  of 
nature,  as  to  affect  his  whole  after  life  and,  possibly, 
the  life  of  mankind. 


The  Memory  Work 

Verses  from  the  Bible  or  lines  of  poetry,  or  both, 
are  printed  on  each  leaflet.  Three  hymns  are  given 
entire,  one  of  them  being  printed,  a  verse  at  a  time, 
on  three  consecutive  leaflets,  37-39.  The  teacher 
might  well  secure  as  a  minimum  of  memory  work  for 
the  year,  the  following : 

Ten  of  the  verses  from  the  Bible. 

One  continuous  Bible  passage  of  from  six  to  ten  verses 
from  the  Psalms,  or  the  book  of  Job,  or  the  sayings  of  Jesus. 

One  of  the  three  hymns,  preferably  ''I  sing  the  mighty 
power  of  God,"  as  it  seems  to  fit  the  thought  of  the  entire 
course  of  lessons. 

The  teacher  will  wish  to  be  famiUar  with  the  great 
Bible  creation  stories  and  hymns,  Gen.  1:1  to  2:3; 
Job  26:7-14;  Psalms  65:6-13,  and  104  entire;  the 
sublune  statement  of  the  revelation  of  God  through 
nature  in  Job  36:24-33  and  chapters  28,  37  and  38 
.  entu-e;  and  numerous  verses  and  passages  in  the 
Psalms,  such  as  19:1-6  and  96:11-13.  A  number 
of  the  memory  verses  have  been  taken  from  the 
chapters  here  cited. 

Readings  from  the  New  Testament  have  occasion- 
ally been  suggested  to  the  pupil,  in  connection  with 
the  lessons.  The  teacher  may  help  these  children  to 
see,  as  they  read  the  nature  parables  Jesus  told  and 
learn  about  the  places  he  frequented,  that  the  story 
of  his  life  is,   as   Fishin'  Jimmy   discovered,   ''an 

xix 


XX  THE  MEMORY   WORK 

out-door  gospel  all  through."^     The  leading  nature 
parables  and  references  are  here  given :  — 

The  Sower.     Matt.  13:1-9. 

The  Wheat,  and  the  Tares.     Matt.  13 :  24-30. 

The  Good  Tree  and  its  Fruit.     Matt.  7:16-20;  Luke  6: 

43-45. 
The  Fig  Tree.     Luke  13:6-9. 
The  Weather.     Matt.  16 : 1-3 ;  Luke  12 :  54-57. 
The  Harvest.     Matt.  9 :  37-38 ;  Luke  10:2. 
The  Mustard  Seed.     Matt.  13 : 31-32;  Luke  13 :  18. 
The  Lost  Sheep.     Matt.  18: 12-14;  Luke  15:3-7. 
The  Sparrow.     Matt.  10:29-31. 
Lihes,  Birds  and  Grass,  and  the  lesson  they  teach.     Matt. 

6:25-33. 

1  Fiskin'  Jimmy.    By  Anne  Trumbull  Slosson. 


Books  for  the  Teacher 

The  following  books  are  suggested  as  helpful  to 
the  teacher  of  this  course :  — 

Botany  (Elementary).     L.  H.  Bailey. 

Animal  Life.  A  First  Book  of  Zoology.    Jordan  &  Kellogg. 

A  Text  Book  of  Geology.     Albert  Perry  Brigham. 

Prehistoric  Times.     Sir  John  Lubbock. 

The  Beauties  of  Nature.     Sir  John  Lubbock. 

The  Nature-Study  Idea.     L.  H.  Bailey. 

Astronomy  of  Today.     Cecil  C.  Dolmage. 

The  Life  of  the  Bee.     Maeterlinck. 

In  Beaver  World.     Enos  A.  Mills. 

The  Ro\l\nce  of  the  Beaver.    A.  Radcliffe  Dugmore. 

American  Beaver  and  His  Works.     Lewis  H.  Morgan. 

Blossom  Hosts  and  Insect  Guests.    William  Hamilton 

Gibson. 
A  Year  of  Miracle.     William  C.  Gannett. 
Tables  of  Stone.     Henry  M.  Sinmions. 
The  Unending  Genesis.     Henry  M.  Simmons. 

There  are  many  nature  studies  and  essays  which 
will  give  information,  inspiration  and  delight. 
Among  these  are  the  various  books  by  Henry  D. 
Thoreau,  John  Burroughs,  John  Muir,  Bradford 
Torrey,  and  Dallas  Lore  Sharp.  All  these  are  pub- 
lished by  Houghton  Mifflin  Company,  Boston,  who 
will  send  catalogue  on  request.  The  nature  poems 
of  Wordsworth  (especially  ''Lines  written  a  few  miles 
above  Tintern  Abbey  ")  and  Ceha  Thaxter  will  be 
helpful,  while  many  anthologies,  such  as  The  Open 
Road,  by  E.  V.  Lucas,  The  Oxford  Book  of  Nature 
Verse,  and  The  Two  Voices  (poems  of  the  moun- 
tains and  the  sea),  collected  by  John  W.  Chadwick, 
will  aid  in  the  religious  interpretation  of  nature. 


PART  I 

The  World  in  which  we  Live 

LESSONS   1-7 


Flower  in  the  crannied  wall, 
I  pluck  you  out  of  the  crannies :  — 
Hold  you  here,  root  and  all,  in  my  hand. 
Little  flower  —  but  if  I  could  understand 
What  you  are,  root  and  all,  and  all  in  all, 
I  should  know  what  God  and  man  is. 

Tennyson 


LESSON   1 
BEAUTY  IN  GOD'S  WORLD:  THE   CLOUDS 


MEMORY   VERSE 

Bless  the  Lord,  O  my  soul. 

O  Lord  my  God,  thou  art  very  great; 

Thou  art  clothed  with  honor  and  majesty: 

Who  coverest  thyself  with  light  as  with  a  garment; 

Who  stretchest  out  the  heavens  like  a  curtain; 

Who  layeth  the  beams  of  his  chambers  in  the  waters; 

Who  maketh  the  clouds  his  chariot; 

Who  walketh  upon  the  wings  of  the  wind. 

Ps.  104:1-3 
The  Purpose 

The  purpose  of  this  lesson  is  to  introduce  in  a  general 
way  the  subjects  of  the  lessons  that  are  to  follow,  and  to 
draw  the  children  out  by  asking  and  suggesting  what  they 
may  have  noticed  in  God's  great  outdoor  world. 

The  clouds  are  a  part  of  nature  which  all  children,  those 
of  city  as  well  as  country,  will  have  seen  and  watched. 
They  are  used  in  the  first  lesson  to  begin  the  implanting 
of  that  truth  which  will  run  through  the  whole  year's 
lessons,  that  all  nature  is  working  together  to  fulfil  the 
divine  purposes  and  that  God  dwells  within  even  the 
humblest  part  of  nature's  life. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

The  children  will  have  come  back  from  their  vacations 
eager  to  tell  what  they  have  seen  in  the  outdoor  world 
during  the  summer,  and  ready  to  learn  more  about  the 


4  THE   WORLD   IN   WHICH   WE   LIVE 

interesting  things  in  nature.  They  should  be  encouraged 
to  tell  about  whatever  in  nature  has  seemed  beautiful 
and  wonderful  to  them,  but  their  attention  should  be 
skilfully  converged  upon  the  subjects  given  in  the  story, 
as  opportunities  will  come  later  to  talk  about  the  other 
things. 

In  telling  the  lesson  story  of  the  clouds  try  to  awaken 
the  interest  of  the  child  by  drawing  upon  his  imagina- 
tion. Tell  it  vividly,  so  as  to  present  a  picture  before  the 
mind,  or  to  recall  one  to  the  memory.  In  all  the  telling 
of  the  stories  awaken  the  child's  consciousness  to  the 
marvelous  life  going  on  about  him,  and  try  to  arouse  in 
him  a  loving  interest  in  it. 

When  telling  the  story  of  the  clouds  dwell  upon  the 
fact  that  it  is  God's  loving  care  for  the  world  that  sends 
the  clouds  and  the  rain.  Begin  in  this  first  lesson  to  in- 
stil into  the  child's  mind  the  fact  that  God  is  in  and 
through  all  things. 

Hand  Work 

The  leaflet  and  the  folded  sheet  containing  pictures 
of  clouds  are  to  be  given  to  the  pupils.  Call  attention 
to  the  cloud  names  and  have  the  class  repeat  them  in 
concert.  Ask  the  pupils  to  watch  the  sky  during  the 
week  and  bring  the  following  Sunday  a  list  of  the  clouds 
they  see  each  day  recorded  on  page  4  of  the  leaflet.  Refer 
to  the  pictures  again  and  again  during  the  year,  so  that 
the  children  will  become  familiar  with  these  simple  forms 
of  the  clouds. 

OPENING   TALK 

The  story  itself  opens  with  the  questions  and  subjects 
that  introduce  the  topic  of  the  beauty  and  use  of  the 
clouds. 


BEAUTY   IN   GOD'S   WORLD:  THE   CLOUDS 

What  of  all  the  out-of-door  things  that  you  saw 
last  summer  did  you  think  the  most  wonderful  or 
beautiful? 

Was  it  the  flowers  with  their  beautifully  colored 
cups,  opening  one  by  one,  where  the  bees  steal  in  for 
the  honey,  and  the  butterflies  swing  on  the  petals 
and  the  humming  birds  sip  the  nectar  from  the  very 
bottom  of  the  cups  with  their  long  bills? 

Or  was  it  the  humming  birds  themselves,  the 
daintiest  and  most  beautifully  colored  of  all  the 
birds?  Did  you  notice  the  humming  and  whirring 
sound  that  the  wings  made  when  the  little  birds  were 
hovering  over  the  flowers  and  balancing  themselves 
while  they  sipped  the  nectar?  And  did  you  see  their 
glistening,  golden-green  or  ruby-colored  throats? 

Perhaps  it  was  a  bird's  nest  that  gave  you  joy, — 
a  nest  full  of  pretty  eggs,  and  later,  of  little  hungry 
birds,  which  the  father  and  mother  birds  could  never 
seem  to  be  able  to  satisfy.  Perhaps  it  was  the  songs 
of  the  bu'ds  in  the  early  morning  when  their  musip 
makes  the  whole  world  happier. 

It  might  have  been  the  woods  that  seemed  wonder- 
ful to  you.  Perhaps  you  went  with  your  father  and 
your  mother  where  the  trees  grew  so  thick  and  so 
tall  that  they  made  deep  forests  where  one  had  to 
be  careful  not  to  lose  his  way,  and  where  everything 


6  THE  WORLD  IN   WHICH  WE  LIVE 

was  so  still  that  even  the  birds  hushed  their  voices. 
Such  wonderful  things  as  one  finds  in  those  deep, 
dark  forests!  The  pretty  moss,  soft  and  damp,  and 
so  thick  that  one  can  walk  among  the  trees  without 
the  least  noise,  if  only  one  can  avoid  breaking  the 
dry  twigs;  or  the  feather-like  ferns  that  sway  and 
bend  with  the  slightest  breath  of  wind,  sometimes 
spreading  over  the  forest  floor  like  a  carpet,  and 
sometimes  growing  in  single  clusters  from  a  crevice 
in  a  rock  or  from  an  old  rotten  stump  or  beside  a 
trickling  stream!  Or  you  may  have  seen  the  great 
rocks  which  lie  in  such  tumbled  masses  that  one 
looks  in  amazement  and  wonders  what  broke  them 
up  and  piled  them  there! 

Did  you  hear  the  leaves  whisper  together  when 
the  wind  came  through  the  forest?  Sometimes  the 
branches  seem  to  sigh  gently,  but  at  other  times 
they  almost  seem  to  groan.  That  is  when  the  wind 
pushes  them  too  hard  in  its  play.  When  the  wind  is 
in  earnest  it  is  very  rough,  and  the  tops  of  those  great, 
strong  trees  bend  and  wave  almost  like  the  tall  grass  in 
a  gentle  breeze.  Sometimes  the  wind  is  so  fierce  that 
it  breaks  off  large  branches  and  blows  down  the  trees 
themselves. 

The  wind  when  it  is  fierce  and  strong  can  blow  so 
iiard  that  it  makes  great  waves  upon  the  ocean.  It 
may  be  that  that  was  one  of  the  wonderful  things 
you  saw  last  summer.  Perhaps  you  saw  the  waves 
come  dashing  and  pounding  upon  the  beach,  all 
crested  with  white  foam,  or  tossing  the  spray  high  up 
on  the  jagged  rocks  with  a  roar  that  could  be  heard 
a  long  way  off.     It  seemed  strange  that  the  ocean, 


BEAUTY   IN   GOD'S   WORLD:   THE  CLOUDS    7 

which  had  been  so  smooth  the  day  before,  could  be 
lashed  into  such  great  waves  because  the  wind  blew 
harder  than  usual.  It  seems  stranger  still  to  think 
of  the  strength  those  waves  have,  and  what  they  can 
do.  Did  you  not  see  some  of  the  large  rocks  the 
waves  had  lifted  and  thrown  up  during  the  winter 
storms,  or  some  of  the  strong  walls  they  had  pulled 
down? 

There  is  one  thing  you  could  all  see,  wherever  you 
were;  something  that  floats  above  the  city  streets  as 
well  as  above  the  tree-tops,  above  the  mountains  and 
above  the  surging  ocean.    It  is  the'  clouds. 

You  must  have  seen  the  clouds  last  summer.  Did 
you  notice  how  they  seem  to  scud  across  the  sky? 
Did  you  ever  think  what  makes  them  go  hurrying 
over  our  heads  so  fast?  Yes,  the  wind  blows  the 
clouds  in  the  sky  as  well  as  the  great  trees  and  the 
feathery  ferns  and  the  soft  grass  and  the  ocean 
waves.  Sometimes  the  clouds  are  blown  so  fast 
that  where  in  one  moment  the  sun  was  shining 
brightly,  in  another  it  would  be  gone,  —  hidden  be- 
hind the  clouds. 

Those  clouds  which  you  see  scudding  across  the 
sky  or  stretching  over  it  in  such  odd  shapes  are  very 
useful  to  us.  Did  you  know  that  they  are  like  cur- 
tains to  the  world,  and  that  they  shut  off  the  hot 
rays  of  the  sun  every  once  in  a  while?  For  although 
the  sun  gives  us  life  and  warmth,  and  although  we 
could  not  live  without  it,  yet  we  could  not  stand  too 
much  of  it.  On  a  hot  day  in  summer  how  thankful 
we  are  when  a  few  clouds  curtain  off  the  sun  and  give 
us  relief  from  its  burning  rays.     Everything  seems 


8  THE   WORLD   IN   WHICH   WE   LIVE 

glad.  The  wilting  flowers,  with  their  drooping 
leaves,  straighten  up.  The  birds  twitter  joyfully. 
The  cat  and  dog  get  up  and  stretch  themselves  and 
come  out  of  their  shady  corners. 

Then  if  it  should  rain,  how  welcome  the  shower  is 
and  how  the  thirsty  earth  drinks  up  the  water;  how 
the  leaves  of  the  trees  glisten;  how  fresh  the  flowers 
become  after  their  bath;  and  how  sweet  the  air 
smells!  Sometimes  we  think  that  we  do  not  hke 
rain.  We  hope  that  it  will  not  rain  and  we  even  make 
ourselves  unhappy  if  it  does.  ' '  If  only  we  might  have 
pleasant  days  always,"  we  sigh. 

But  think  what  it  would  mean  to  have  pleasant 
days  always.  There  would  be  no  pretty,  white, 
fleecy  clouds  scudding  across  the  sky  as  if  they  were 
playing  tag.  No  great  mounds  of  clouds  piling  up 
from  the  horizon  like  huge  masses  of  foam.  No 
beautiful  sunrises,  or  sunsets  painting  all  the  sky  in 
gorgeous  colors.  And  there  would  be  no  rain,  of 
course. 

But  without  rain  what  vshould  we  do?  Where 
would  be  our  flowers,  our  grass,  our  shrubs  and  our 
trees?  Where  would  be  our  rivers,  our  lakes  and  the 
vast  ocean?  And  where  indeed  should  we  be  without 
anything  to  eat  or  drink?  We  could  not  live  in  the 
world  at  all  if  the  fleecy  white  clouds,  or  the  thin, 
gray  clouds,  or  even  those  thick,  black  clouds  did  not 
come  just  so  often,  and,  shutting  away  the  sun,  give 
us  the  rain  that  we  ag^  everything  else  upon  the 
earth  must  have.     ^  <"' 

You  did  not  think  that  the  clouds  were  so  impor- 
tant, did  you?    They  seemed  beautiful  and  strange 


BEAUTY   IN   GOD'S   WORLD:   THE   CLOUDS     9 

and  wonderful,  and  sometimes  almost  terrible,  but 
did  you  know  that  they  were  more  important  to  us 
than  anything  else  except  the  sunlight?  When  you 
saw  them  go  merrily  across  the  sky  you  did  not 
think  that  they  were  hurrying  to  do  God's  service. 
You  never  thought  of  the  clouds  as  servants  of  God. 
Y'et  that  is  just  what  they  are,  —  servants  of  God. 
They  have  helped  Him  make  the  great  wonderful 
world  what  it  is  and  they  are  still  helping  Him. 

Think  again  of  all  those  beautiful  and  wonderful 
things  you  saw  last  summer,  and  then  think  what 
they  would  be  like  if  the  clouds  did  not  do  God's 
bidding  and  give  us  rain.  Can  you  think  of  any- 
thing that  would  be  happier  or  better  with  no  rain 
at  all? 

It  will  be  even  more  interesting  to  watch  the 
clouds  now  that  you  know  how  useful  they  are  to  us. 
When  you  see  the  thick,  white  clouds  rolling  up  from 
the  horizon,  piling  themselves  upon  one  another,  you 
will  think  of  them  as  God's  servants  getting  ready  to 
send  us  rain.  And  when  you  see  the  white,  fleecy 
little  clouds  making  shadows  skip  over  the  grassy 
fields  while  they  play  at  hide  and  seek  with  the  sun, 
you  will  feel  very  happy,  for  you  will  know  that  those 
very  skipping  and  dancing  shadows  are  bringing 
comfort  to  the  flowers  and  the  trees,  and  all  the  little 
insects  and  birds  that  live  among  them,  —  and  you 
will  think,  ''God's  servants,  the  clouds,  are  very 
busy  trying  to  help  us  this  hot  day." 


LESSON   2 
EARTH'S   GARMENT   OF   GREEN 

MEMORY  VERSE 

All  the  earth  shall  be  filled  with  the  glory  of  the  Lord. 

Num.  14:  21 

The  Purpose 

It  is  the  purpose  of  this  lesson  to  show  how  God's  lov- 
ing care  clothes  the  earth  and  makes  it  the  beautiful 
world  we  know. 

Many  children  believe  in  God's  love  and  care  for 
themselves  and  for  mankind  in  general,  but  have  never 
been  taught  that  God  is  in  and  through  everything, 
even  trees  and  plants  and  grass.  They  should  now  begin 
to  see  and  feel  that  order  runs  through  even  the  most 
common  things  in  life.  For  that  reason  this  lesson  ends 
with  the  weeds. 

The  vegetation  which  they  have  loved  in  trees  and 
flowers,  and  disliked  in  weeds,  should  assume  an  impor- 
tance in  their  minds  aside  from  any  use  man  makes  of  the 
different  plants.  The  lessons  are  planned  to  awaken 
gradually  the  child's  consciousness  to  the  fact  that  law 
and  order  reign  everywhere  throughout  the  universe. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

Keep  before  the  children  the  fact  that  you  are  dealing 
with  nature  and  the  bare  places  found  in  nature.  Tell 
them  that  city  streets  and  squares  and  gravel  pits  have 

10 


EARTH'S   GARMENT   OF   GREEN  11 

been  made  by  man  for  his  convenience.  Yet  call  atten- 
tion to  the  fact  that  green  plants  will  grow  between  the 
bricks  of  an  unused  sidewalk  and  creep  far  up  on  an  un- 
used road,  finally  covering  it  entirely.  In  time  an  un- 
sightly gravel  bank  will  be  covered  with  a  green  growth. 

Impress  upon  their  minds  the  patience  with  which 
nature  obeys  God's  law,  working  over  and  over  to  cover 
again  with  vegetation  earth  and  rocks  left  bare  by  storm 
or  flood  or  by  man's  hands. 

Show  the  picture  of  the  fiddle  head  in  the  leaflet,  after 
you  have  read  about  it  in  the  story. 

Hand  Work 

Ask  the  children  to  gather  and  press  some  part  of  the 
earth's  green  garment,  whatever  they  are  able  to  get  at 
this  season  of  the  year  that  seems  beautiful  or  interesting 
to  them,  such  as  the  frond  of  a  fern,  a  flower,  leaves, 
feathery  grasses,  moss  or  seaweed.  If  possible  the  chil- 
dren should  select  their  specimens  themselves  without 
any  suggestions  from  the  teacher,  except  that  they  are 
to  bring  some  part  of  the  earth's  garment  that  especially 
interests  them,  pressed  and  mounted. 


OPENING   TALK   AND    QUESTIONS 

What  did  we  call  the  clouds  when  we  were  talking 
about  them?  (God's  servants.)  What  do  they  give  to 
our  earth?  If  there  were  no  clouds  should  we  be  happier 
than  we  are  now?  What  would  happen  if  it  did  not  rain? 
(The  world  would  become  like  one  vast  desert.) 

Show  me  what  clouds  you  have  seen  this  last  week. 

Because  the  clouds  do  God's  service  we  are  able  to 
have  upon  the  earth  the  beautiful  green  plants  that  we 
shall  hear  about  to-day. 


EARTH'S   GARMENT   OF   GREEN 

Those  ferns  you  saw  growing  last  summer  are  such 
beautiful  things!  When  you  see  a  clump  of  them  in 
the  deep  woods  they  look  so  delicate  and  soft  that 
they  seem  like  long,  green  feathers.  When  a  gentle 
breeze  steals  through  the  trees  they  bend  and  wave 
so  gracefully  that  they  make  the  forest  seem  like 
fairyland  and  the  ferns  themselves  like  the  sway- 
ing forms  of  fairies  as  they  dance  in  groups  upon 
the  forest  floor. 

The  ferns  that  grow  upon  the  cliffs  nod  and  wave 
their  long  feathery  fronds  at  you  as  if  to  say,  ''Come 
up  here  with  me  and  see  all  that  I  see." 

But  you  cannot  get  up  there.  The  crevices  into 
which  the  fern  tucks  its  feet  or  roots  are  too  small 
and  too  far  apart  for  your  feet  to  climb  up  by,  and 
you  cannot  get  to  the  fern,  nodding  so  gently  to  you 
from  its  rocky  cliff.  You  wonder  how  it  grew  there 
and  how  it  can  keep  on  growing.  Then  there  are 
other  ferns  that  cover  the  smooth  rocks  or  the  bare 
cliffs  so  thickly  that  the  rocks  look  as  if  they  were 
wrapped  in  a  mossy  blanket.  Sometimes  you  can 
hear  water  trickling  down  behind  the  fern,  and  you 
almost  think  that  you  are  in  a  fairy  dell. 

Did  you  ever  stop  to  think  how  few  bare  spaces 
you  have  seen  upon  the  earth?  How  some  plant  or 
bit  of  moss  will  try  to  grow  in  almost  every  place? 

12 


EARTH'S   GARMENT   OF   GREEN  13 

God  has  clothed  the  earth  in  a  beautiful  garment 
of  living  green.  It  creeps  up  on  the  smooth,  sloping 
rocks  in  ferns  and  moss.  It  hangs  down  from  the 
tall,  jagged  rocks  in  ferns  and  vines.  It  lines  the  sides 
of  brooks  and  ponds  with  all  sorts  of  plants  and 
bushes  and  pretty  flowers.  It  even  grows  out  into 
the  ponds  and  lakes  as  water  plants  and  as  the 
beautiful  white  water  lily,  and  in  the  ocean  as 
long  fringes  of  seaweed.  It  pushes  up  the  country 
roads  in  shrubbery  and  flowers  all  intertwined  with 
grapevines.  It  spreads  itself  out  on  the  earth  in 
woods  and  in  grassy  fields  and  in  flower-bedecked 
meadows. 

It  is  a  garment  of  many  patterns  that  God  has 
spread  over  the  earth  to  clothe  it.  And  every  pat- 
tern that  makes  up  this  wonderful  garment  is  useful 
as  well  as  beautiful.  How  many  of  these  different 
patterns  can  you  think  of? 

Everywhere  the  green  robe  stretches  out  to  cover 
the  bare  earth  and  some  useful  or  beautiful  plant 
grows  upon  almost  every  spot.  You  know  how  it  is 
when  you  make  a  garden.  If  you  do  not  sow  seeds 
in  the  fresh  earth,  nature  will.  She  has  plenty  of 
seeds  to  sow  where  you  do  not  sow  yours,  and  some- 
times her  seeds  come  up  just  where  you  planted 
yours.  You  are  not  always  quite  sure  which  of  the 
tiny  plants  grew  up  from  your  seeds  and  which  grew 
up  from  hers.  If  you  leave  the  earth  in  your  garden 
uncared  for,  nature  will  take  care  of  it  for  you  and 
cover  it  with  growing  things.  That  is  God's  law  for 
the  earth.  Nature  sows  her  seeds  broadcast,  and 
whenever  there  is  a  possible  chance  they  come  up. 


14         THE  WORLD   IN   WHICH   WE   LIVE 

Even  in  the  desert  some  things  grow, — it  is  not  all 
a  rocky  or  sandy  waste. 

Did  you  ever  see  a  cactus  with  its  thick,  juicy 
stems  covered  with  sharp,  bristling  spines?  That  is 
a  plant  of  the  desert.  Where  do  you  suppose  its  roots 
found  the  water  that  is  stored  up  in  those  thick 
branches?  Men  and  animals  shun  the  desert  because 
they  can  find  no  water  to  drink,  but  this  plant  finds 
it  somewhere  under  the  hot,  dry  sand,  and  stores  it 
up  for  future  use.  Indeed,  animals  and  men  lost 
in  the  desert  often  save  their  lives  by  breaking  the 
thick  stems  and  sucking  out  the  water.  Strange,  is 
it  not,  where  those  desert  plants  find  that  water? 

And  isn't  it  strange,  too,  how  the  daintiest  and 
most  delicate  little  flowers  come  out  first  in  the 
spring,  when  the  weather  is  so  cold  and  frosty  that 
the  snow  has  hardly  melted  away?  Such  brave  little 
flowers  those  wood  anemones  and  hepaticas  are!  Did 
you  ever  pick  the  little  starry-eyed  hepatica  and  see 
the  stems  of  the  flowers  and  of  the  tiny  new  leaves 
all  covered  with  soft  gray  fur? 

There  is  the  trailing  arbutus  and  those  Alpine 
flowers  which  blossom  just  at  the  edge  of  the  melting 
ice  on  the  tops  of  the  high  mountains.  Sometimes 
these  Alpine  flowers  are  so  impatient  to  open  that  the 
buds  force  their  way  up  through  the  thin,  hard  ice, 
and  do  not  wait  for  it  all  to  melt  away.  Shouldn't 
you  think  they  would  freeze?  But  they  don't.  They 
keep  alive  just  as  the  little  crocuses  do  which  come 
up  in  our  gardens  as  soon  as  ever  there  is  the  smallest 
patch  of  green  grass  showing  through  the  snow. 

The  ferns  are  in  no  such  hurry  to  come  up.    They 


EARTH'S  GARMENT   OF   GREEN  15 

wait  until  it  is  warmer,  and  then  out  of  the  earth 
comes  the  baby  frond  all  rolled  up  tight  like  a  watch 
spring.  As  it  grows  it  unwinds  until  the  graceful 
feathery  frond  is  free  from  its  tight  roll.  These  baby 
ferns  are  called  fiddle  heads.  Did  you  ever  see  any? 
The  humming  birds  know  where  to  find  them,  for 
they  line  their  nests  with  the  soft,  brown,  woolly 
blanket  that  covers  some  of  these  baby  ferns. 

We  always  think  of  ferns  as  growing  in  the  deep, 
dark  woods,  or  on  rocks  or  beside  laughing,  chatter- 
ing brooks.  But  they  grow  in  great,  feathery  masses 
in  the  open  swamps,  and  they  cluster  around  the 
bowlders  in  open  pastures,  and  they  even  crowd 
their  way  into  the  country  roadsides.  Wherever 
they  can  tuck  their  feet  in  securely  and  get  their 
proper  nourishment  they  send  up  their  graceful 
fronds  and  help  to  make  earth's  garment  whole  and 
beautiful. 

All  sorts  of  mosses  grow  on  the  forest  floor  and  on 
stumps  of  trees  and  on  the  rocks  where  the  ferns 
grow.  They  even  grow  where  the  ferns  can  find  no 
crevice  large  enough  to  tuck  their  roots  into.  If  the 
rock  is  moist  and  shaded  the  moss  will  grow  so  thick 
that  your  feet  sink  away  down  into  it.  Some  of  the 
mosses  are  so  beautiful  that  you  might  wish  you 
were  a  fairy  and  could  live  in  such  a  wonderful  little 
forest.  Where  the  rocks  are  too  dry  and  smooth  for 
the  mosses  the  lichens  put  their  pretty  green  and 
brown  and  yellow  rosettes.  Does  not  nature  clothe 
her  rocks  beautifully? 

If  a  tree  falls  down  in  the  forest  and  dies,  losing  all 
of  its  own  fine  dress  of  leaves,  the  earth  tries  to  put 


16         THE  WORLD   IN   WHICH   WE   LIVE 

about  it  some  of  her  garment.  Moss  and  lichen  grow 
upon  it  and  finally  cover  it  up,  so  that  after  years  and 
years  it  makes  a  long,  moss-covered  mound  upon  the 
forest  floor.  If  woods  are  cut  down  trees  will  begin 
to  grow  again  to  take  the  places  of  the  others.  There 
will  be  another  forest  there  in  time  unless  the  stumps 
of  the  old  trees  are  destroyed  and  the  land  is  culti- 
vated. 

Nature  never  gets  discouraged.  She  works  over 
and  over  again,  so  patiently,  to  cover  the  bare  spaces. 
If  it  is  too  bare  or  too  dry  for  one  plant  to  grow 
she  tries  another  and  another.  If  an  oak  tree  does 
not  like  to  grow  on  sandy  soil,  pine  trees  do;  and  little 
birch  trees  will  begin  to  grow  on  a  gravel  bank  that 
almost  everything  else  seems  to  shun. 

Even  the  sand  hills  back  from  the  seashore  are 
looked  after.  The  wind  likes  to  play  with  the  sand 
on  these  hills,  and  blows  it  around  in  shifting  masses. 
So  nature  plants  a  kind  of  grass  there  that  has  long, 
creeping  roots.  These  roots  grow  so  long,  and  cross 
and  recross  among  themselves  so  often,  that  they 
bind  the  sand  compactly  and  the  wind  can  blow  only 
a  little  off  the  top. 

You  know  how  the  rough  old  ocean  plays  with  the 
sand  and  pebbles  on  the  beach  and  how  the  waves 
move  them  about.  But  underneath  the  water, 
where  the  waves  are  more  quiet,  the  rocks  are  cov- 
ered with  seaweed.  Long,  slender  masses  wave  to 
and  fro  as  the  tide  comes  in  or  goes  out.  Under- 
neath the  seaweed  are  sea  mosses  of  wonderful  colors 
and  shapes,  so  fine  and  delicate  that  they  must  be 
floated  in  water  to  be  seen.    The  deeper  the  water  is, 


EARTH'S   GARMENT   OF   GREEN  17 

the  finer  and  more  beautiful  the  mosses  and  sea 
plants  are. 

It  is  one  of  God's  laws  for  the  world  that  it  should 
be  covered  with  growing  things.  Is  it  any  wonder, 
then,  that  nature  wants  to  use  the  nice,  rich  soil  that 
you  leave  bare  in  your  gardens?  You  like  to  have  it 
bare.  It  looks  better  to  you  that  way  and  your 
flowers  will  gi-ow  better  in  carefully  cultivated  soil 
not  crowded  by  other  plants.  But  nature  does  not 
wish  the  earth  left  unused.  She  is  fulfilling  God's 
law  when  she  covers  it  up  with  growing  plants.  She 
scatters  broadcast  every  year  millions  of  seeds  just 
so  there  shall  be  no  waste  spaces. 

Do  not  be  impatient  with  the  plants  that  you  call 
weeds.  You  must  pull  them  up  if  you  wish  your 
garden  to  grow  nicely,  but  do  not  fret  because  it  must 
be  done  so  often.  Only  remember  that  they  are  a 
part  of  earth's  garment,  and  that  it  is  God's  law  for 
the  garment  to  reach  out  and  cover  the  whole  earth. 
Remember,  too,  that  nature  is  always  very  busy 
obeying  God's  law. 


LESSON   3 
THE   BLOSSOMING   PLANTS 

MEMORY  VERSE 

Consider  the  lilies  of  the  field,  how  they  grow;  they  toil  not, 
neither  do  they  spin:  yet  I  say  unto  you,  that  even  Solomon  in  all 
his  glory  was  not  arrayed  like  one  of  these.  But  if  God  doth  so 
clothe  the  grass  of  the  field,  which  to-day  is,  and  to-morrow  is  cast 
into  the  oven,  shall  he  not  much  more  clothe  you? 

Matt.  6:  28-30 

The  Purpose 

The  purpose  of  this  lesson  is  not  only  to  teach  the 
child  about  the  life  of  a  plant  but  to  open  his  eyes  to  the 
fact  that  the  different  things  in  nature  are  helping  each 
other.  God's  laws  are  so  wonderful  that  any  one  of  his 
creations  in  living  according  to  His  laws  not  only  lives 
its  own  life  well  but  helps  some  other  form  of  life.  This 
teaching  will  be  repeated  again  in  other  forms. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

For  this  lesson  the  teacher  should  bring  a  lima  bean, 
or  a  pea,  or  a  pumpkin  seed,  already  sprouted,  with 
roots  and  the  first  leaves  well  enough  developed  to  be 
easily  seen  by  the  class.  If  possible  bring  also  a  flower 
of  such  shape  that  the  children  can  see  for  themselves 
how  the  shape  of  the  cup  fits  the  body  of  the  bee. 

When  telling  about  the  mutual  help  which  flowers 
and  bees  give  each  other,  keep  the  children's  attention 
upon  the  flowers  and  the  work  the  bees  do  for  them,  as 
there  will  be  opportunity  enough  to  talk  about  the  bees 
themselves  in  Lesson  10.     Emphasize  the  fact  that  the 

18 


THE  BLOSSOMING  PLANTS  19 

bees  in  getting  their  own  food  help  the  flowers  to  produce 
better  seeds,  and  that  we  in  planting  gardens  for  our  own 
food  help  to  hnprove  many  of  the  plants  which  form  the 
earth's  covering. 

Hand  Work 

Seeds  should  be  distributed  among  the  children,  the 
teacher  giving  directions  how  to  sprout  them.  The  bean, 
pea,  pumpkin,  melon  or  nasturtium  seed  should  be 
soaked  for  twenty-four  hours  in  a  warm  place.  At  the 
end  of  that  time  place  the  seed  in  a  tumbler  and,  holding 
it  against  the  side,  fill  the  tumbler  with  damp  sawdust. 
Keep  the  sawdust  damp  and  keep  the  tumbler  in  a  fairly 
warm  place,  covered  by  a  sheet  of  glass.  Sphagnum 
moss  may  be  used  instead  of  the  sawdust.  The  whole 
process  of  germination  can  be  seen  in  this  way.  After  the 
seeds  have  grown  enough  to  spread  apart  and  hold  the  first 
pair  of  leaves  upright  they  should  be  taken  from  the  glass 
and  drawn  upon  the  sheet  accompanying  the  leaflet. 

OPENING    TALK 

If  men  cut  down  a  hill  and  leave  a  gravel  bank,  what 
does  nature  try  to  do?  If  a  brick  sidewalk  is  unused, 
what  happens?  If  a  street  is  fenced  ofl"  and  unused,  will 
it  remain  just  as  it  was  before? 

If  you  pull  up  all  the  little  plants  that  nature  sows  in 
your  garden  and  leave  the  earth  bare,  will  it  stay  bare? 
Whose  law  is  nature  thus  fulfilling?  Tell  me  some  of  the 
different  places  that  the  garment  of  the  earth  covers. 

Let  us  see  what  parts  of  earth's  garment  you  have 
brought  to  show  us  this  morning. 

To-day  we  are  to  think  how  all  the  green  garment  of 
the  earth  grows  from  seeds,  and  how  the  flowers  and 
the  bees  help  each  otlior. 


THE   BLOSSOMING   PLANTS 

When  you  take  a  little  seed,  dry  and  hard  from  be- 
ing kept  through  the  winter,  and  put  it  in  the  earth, 
what  will  happen  to  it?  You  expect  it  to  grow  into  a 
plant  with  flowers  like  those  the  seed  came  from,  do 
you  not?  And  in  order  that  it  may  sprout  and  grow 
into  a  fine  healthy  plant,  you  take  care  of  it.  You 
water  it  carefully,  if  the  clouds  do  not  give  it  rain 
enough. 

But  that  is  not  all  the  seeds  must  have,  just  earth 
and  water.  They  must  have  warmth  as  well,  or  they 
will  not  grow  at  all.  Many  seeds  are  in  the  ground  all 
winter.  They  are  dropped  from  the  ripened  seed 
pods  late  in  the  summer  or  in  the  autumn,  and  they 
fall  into  the  soft  earth;  but  they  do  not  come 
up.  They  lie  there  asleep  until  something  calls  to 
them. 

Can  you  tell  me  what  it  is  that  calls  to  the  little 
seeds  so  sound  asleep  in  the  moist  earth? 

The  sun !  Yes,  the  sun  shines  down  and  calls  to  the 
sleeping  seeds  to  wake  up.  It  shines  bright  and  warm, 
the  ice  and  snow  begin  to  melt  away,  and  the  water 
in  the  brooks  runs  free  and  happy.  Children  come 
running  home  from  school. 

'^ Mamma,"  they  cry,  ^'spring  has  come!^' 

And  sure  enough,  spring  has  come.  The  birds  come 
one  by  one  at  first,  then  in  flocks;  the  trees  begin  to 

20 


THE  BLOSSOMING   PLANTS  21 

show  a  little  green  at  the  ends  of  their  brown 
branches;  the  earth  dries  up  so  that  it  is  no  longer 
wet  and  sticky;  a  soft  gentle  rain  falls,  and  up  come 
the  Httle  plants  and  flowers,  one  by  one. 

It  is  the  warmth  that  the  sun  gives  to  them  that 
makes  the  seeds  stir  and  wake  and  then  grow.  They 
cannot  move  about  as  you  do  when  you  wake  up  and 
get  out  of  bed,  they  have  to  grow  up  from  their  beds. 
Instead  of  feet,  they  have  roots  which  begin  to  grow 
out  of  the  seed,  and  go  down  deeper  and  deeper  into 
the  ground.  Now  these  roots  anchor  the  tiny  plant 
so  it  will  stay  right  there,  and  they  also  feed  it  by 
drawing  up  out  of  the  earth,  where  the  seed  had  been 
sleeping  so  long,  just  what  it  needs  to  make  it  grow. 

After  the  root  has  commenced  to  grow  downward 
the  stem  appears  and  begins  to  grow  in  an  opposite 
direction.  The  stem  is  curved  over  and  bent  down 
as  if  the  httle  plant  were  hanging  its  head,  and  at  the 
end  are  two  tiny  leaves.  These  leaves  want  to  reach 
the  sunlight,  but  they  are  too  dehcate  to  push  their 
way  through  the  earth,  so  the  stem  pushes  its  way 
out  of  the  ground  and  pulls  the  leaves  out  after  it. 
Then  it  straightens  up  and  the  httle  leaves  open  and 
spread  out,  whole  and  perfect,  because  the  stem 
dragged  them  out  of  the  ground  instead  of  pushing 
them  out. 

Did  you  ever  help  mother  or  father  plant  their 
gardens?  Did  you  watch  to  see  how  the  seeds  would 
come  up?  What  was  the  first  thing  you  saw  appear 
above  the  ground? 

Leaves?  No.  If  you  looked  closely  it  was  a  httle 
looped  stem,  as  if  the  end  of  a  green  button-hook 


22         THE  WORLD   IN   WHICH   WE   LIVE 

were  coming  out  of  the  ground.  And  then  the  next 
morning  when  you  ran  around  to  the  garden  to  see 
how  those  nasturtiums  or  peas  or  beans  were  getting 
on,  you  saw  that  the  curved  green  stem  had  straight- 
ened itself  and  was  standing  upright  with  two  tiny 
leaves  upon  the  top,  didn't  you? 

Sometimes  the  plants  grow  so  fast  that  it  seems  as 
if  you  could  almost  see  them  grow.  The  sun  calls  to 
them  so  that  they  shoot  up  higher  and  higher,  while 
their  roots  go  down  deeper  and  deeper  to  hold  the 
plant  firmly  and  to  furnish  it  with  food  and  water. 
Up  from  the  roots,  through  the  stems  to  the  leaves 
the  moisture  goes,  but  how  it  can  get  up  the  long 
tubes  in  the  stems  without  falling  back  not  even 
learned  men  can  tell  us. 

Yet,  even  without  the  roots  to  send  up  the  water, 
the  stem  of  a  plant  can  draw  it  up.  The  flower  in  a 
vase  of  water  will  often  last  many  days  because  the 
tiny  tubes  in  the  stems,  if  kept  well  open  at  the  ends, 
are  able  to  drink  up  the  water  that  the  flowers  need 
to  keep  them  fresh. 

No  plant,  except  a  water  plant,  will  grow  in  water 
as  well  as  it  will  in  the  earth,  for  the  roots  take  up 
more  than  water.  They  suck  up  something  that  is 
in  the  earth  and  which  the  water  dissolves  and  carries 
along  with  it.  This  mineral  salt,  as  it  is  called,  is 
very  important,  for  it  is  the  plant's  food  and  even  a 
plant  must  eat  as  well  as  drink.  Up  into  the  leaves 
the  food-laden  water  is  forced,  there  to  be  made  over 
into  a  kind  of  starch  which  nourishes  the  plant  and 
makes  it  grow. 

Think  how  much  like  us  those  little  plants  are. 


THE  BLOSSOMING   PLANTS  23 

They  have  feet  to  tuck  them  firmly  into  the  earth, 
and  mouths,  only  these  are  on  the  feet,  to  take  up 
the  food.  They  have  leaves  where  the  food  is  made 
into  real  nourishment  and  where  the  plants  breathe. 
Skin  very  much  like  our  own  covers  the  whole  plant, 
and  httle  tendiils  hold  up  the  climbing  plants  as 
tightly  as  if  they  were  hands. 

These  are  not  the  only  ways  that  plants  are  like 
us.  They  do  something  besides  just  growing  strong 
and  healthy,  with  plenty  of  leaves,  just  as  we  do 
something  besides  growing  into  strong,  healthy 
bodies.    What  the  plant  does  is  to  blossom. 

When  the  first  bud  forms,  how  interested  we  all 
are  to  watch  and  see  how  it  will  open!  There  are  so 
many  things  that  we  want  to  know  about  that 
blossom.  What  color  will  it  be?  What  shape?  Will 
the  blossom  be  a  single  flower  or  a  cluster  of  smaller 
ones?  Will  it  open  in  the  morning  like  the  morning- 
glory  or  in  the  afteriioon  like  the  four-o'clock,  or  in 
the  evening  like  the  evening  primrose?  Or  will  it  be 
open  all  day  and  follow  the  sun  about  as  does  the 
sunflower? 

There  are  so  many  different  things  about  the 
flowers  to  watch  and  to  think  about,  and  every  differ- 
ent thing  about  them  is  for  some  useful  purpose.  It 
is  not  there  just  for  beauty  or  for  show.  The  beauti- 
ful color  or  the  odor;  the  long  tube  or  the  shallow 
cup;  the  soft  fringe  on  the  edge  of  some  petals;  the 
downy  carpet  on  the  curved  underpetals  of  others; 
the  little  hairs  on  the  stem  and  calix ;  the  stamens,  the 
pistil  and  the  yellow  pollen, — all  these  have  a  purpose. 

The  yellow  pollen  which  is  shaken  by  the  stamens 


24         THE  WORLD   IN   WHICH   WE  LIVE 

upon  the  pistil  helps  to  make  the  seeds.  The  httle 
hairs  keep  away  crawling  insects  that  might  harm  the 
flower,  while  the  beautiful  color  and  the  sweet  odor 
attract  to  the  flower  the  flying  insects  that  help  it. 

Did  you  guess  while  you  were  watching  the  honey- 
bees and  the  big,  noisy  bumblebees  going  in  and  out 
of  the  flowers  and  gathering  the  pollen  and  the  nectar, 
that  they  were  helping  the  flowers  as  well  as  helping 
themselves?  Did  you  think  that  the  flowers  needed 
the  bees  to  help  them?    Yet  it  is  so. 

The  beautiful  colors  are  a  device  to  attract  the 
bees;  the  sweet  odor  is  thrown  out  to  tell  the  bees 
that  there  is  nectar  to  be  had. 

For  the  flowers  need  the  bees.  Many  of  them  are 
quite  as  dependent  upon  the  bees  as  the  bees  are  upon 
them.  They  need  the  bees  to  bring  pollen  to  them 
from  other  flowers  of  their  kind  so  they  can  have 
better  seeds  than  they  would  if  the  pollen  from  their 
own  stamens  fell  upon  their  own  pistils.  Many  of  the 
flowers  could  have  seeds  of  their  own,  while  many 
could  not,  without  the  help  of  the  bees.  But  all  seeds 
are  better  if  the  pollen  comes  from  another  flower  of 
the  same  kind. 

So  while  the  bees  work  steadily  gathering  pollen 
and  nectar  for  themselves  they  are  helping  the  flowers 
to  grow  more  and  more  beautiful.  Their  soft,  furry 
bodies  brush  off  and  catch  grains  of  pollen  when 
they  visit  one  flower,  and  leave  these  little  grains 
upon  the  waiting  pistil  of  the  next.  For  the  bees 
always  visit  the  same  kind  of  flowers  each  day  and 
the  flowers  are  arranged  in  such  a  way  as  to  assist  the 
bees  in  getting  and  carrying  the  pollen.    That  is  why 


THE  BLOSSOMING   PLANTS  25 

there  are  so  many  different  shapes  in  flowers.  Does 
it  seem  strange  to  you  that  flowers  and  bees  should  be 
such  friends?  They  work  together  not  only  for  the 
good  of  themselves  but  for  the  good  of  the  world. 

They  tell  us  that  ages  and  ages  ago  the  flowers 
were  all  small  and  all  green  and  that  there  were  no 
large  beautifully  colored  blossoms  at  all.  But  since 
the  bees  have  been  working  upon  them,  the  flowers 
have  grown  larger  and  larger  and  more  and  more 
beautifully  colored. 

In  a  fairy  story  we  might  read  that  a  fairy  touched 
the  little  green  blossoms,  one  by  one,  with  her  wand 
and  turned  them  into  beautiful  flowers  of  all  colors. 
But  this  we  are  telling  is  a  true  story.  The  bees  have 
been  the  fakies,  and  their  tongues  and  furry  bodies 
have  been  the  wands  that  have  transformed  the  green 
blossoms  of  so  long  ago  into  the  lovely  flowers  we  have 
to-day,  with  their  varied  shapes  and  colors.  It  has 
taken  a  long,  long  time  to  do  this,  so  much  longer 
than  you  can  ever  dream. 

But  isn't  it  quite  as  wonderful  as  a  fairy  story? 
Isn't  it  even  more  wonderful?  Doesn't  it  show^  that 
God  is  watching  over  everything  with  most  loving 
care?  If  He  watches  over  the  flowers,  intending  that 
they  shall  grow  more  and  more  beautiful  and  uses  the 
little  bees  to  help  Him,  wiU  He  not  watch  over  all  of 
you.  His  children,  and  help  you  all?  The  whole 
world  is  in  God's  keeping  and  nothing  that  He  creates 
is  too  mean  or  small  for  His  care. 


LESSON  4 
PLANTS   SOWING   THEIR   SEEDS 

MEMORY  VERSE 

And  God  said,  Let  the  earth  put  forth  grass,  herbs  yielding  seed, 
and  fruit-trees  bearing  fruit  after  their  kind,  wherein  is  the  seed 
thereof,  upon  the  earth:  and  it  was  so.  Gen.  1:11 

The  Purpose 

This  lesson  is  a  continuation  of  the  preceding  one  and 
carries  on  the  growth  of  the  plant  to  its  seed-bearing 
and  seed-sowing.  The  purpose  is  the  same  as  that  of 
Lesson  3,  but  it  is  intended  to  open  the  eyes  of  the  child 
still  more  to  the  marvelous  cooperation  that  is  going  on 
all  the  time  in  the  world  about  us,  and  that  has  been 
going  on  since  its  creation.  This  truth  should  give  the 
child  a  reason  why  he  should  trust  in  God. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

This  lesson,  continuing  the  life  and  growth  of  a  plant, 
gives  more  emphasis  to  the  thought  that  ''All  are  needed 
by  each  one."  As  this  was  a  memory  verse  in  the  lessons 
two  years  ago,^  ask  the  children  at  the  end  of  the  hour  to 
repeat  it. 

Have  some  of  the  winged  and  feathered  seeds  to  show 
the  class,  —  some  maple  wings,  clematis  feathers,  burs, 
sticktights,  —  so  they  can  see  for  themselves  these 
different  means  that  nature  uses  to  sow  her  seeds. 

1  In  Living  Together.  By  Frances  M.  Dadmun.  The  Beacon 
Press.     Page  xxxv. 

26 


PLANTS  SOWING   THEIR  SEEDS  27 

Dwell  upon  the  fact  that  God  cannot  watch  over 
His  plants  with  such  loving  care  and  not  watch  over  us 
too.  This  lesson  should  be  used  to  increase  the  child's 
faith  and  trust. 

Teach  with  this  lesson  the  three  parables  which  relate 
to  seeds.  (The  Sower,  Matt.  13:1-9;  The  Wheat  and 
the  Tares,  Matt.  13:24-30;  The  Mustard  Seed,  Matt. 
13:31-32.)  Can  the  children  tell  you  what  lesson  Jesus 
taught  by  each  of  these  seed-stories? 

Hand  Work 

Ask  the  children  to  make  a  collection  of  seeds,  and 
draw  or  paste  them  on  the  sheet  enclosed  in  the  leaflet, 
and  to  record  their  list  on  page  4  of  the  leaflet. 


OPENING   TALK 

How  is  it  that  the  baby  plant  protects  its  first  tender 
leaves  from  the  rough  earth?  If  the  first  two  leaves  and 
the  tiny  bud  between  them  were  broken  off  would  the 
plant  grow?  Do  the  roots  ever  grow  up?  Or  the  leaves 
down? 

What  does  the  plant  do  besides  grow?  Is  the  blossom 
just  to  make  the  plant  more  beautiful?  Does  it  have  any 
help  from  outside? 

If  we  do  right  and  follow  God's  commandments  shall 
we  help  any  besides  ourselves? 

To-day  we  will  follow  the  growth  of  the  plant  still 
further,  and  see  how  it  is  that  each  plant  makes  sure 
there  shall  be  many  more  plants  of  its  kind,  and  what 
helpers  there  are  for  this  work. 


PLANTS   SOWING  THEIR   SEEDS 

What  happens  when  a  flower  fades  and  dies?  Is 
that  all  that  there  is  to  the  life  of  a  plant,  to  grow, 
and  to  blossom,  and  to  die?  Is  there  nothing  left, 
in  the  autumn,  after  all  the  effort  of  growing  and 
blossoming  during  the  summer  but  a  dry,  dead 
plant? 

The  seeds  are  left,  the  millions  and  millions  of 
seeds  of  all  shapes  and  sizes  and  colors;  wrapped  in 
a  thousand  different  kinds  of  wrappings,  and  scat- 
tered in  a  thousand  different  ways.  The  seeds  are 
the  legac}^  which  each  plant  leaves  to  the  world.  In- 
stead of  that  one  plant  which  grew  in  that  spot  during 
the  summer,  there  will  be  many  more  plants  just  like 
it  from  the  seeds  which  it  sows. 

Earth's  garment  must  not  fail,  and  each  plant 
does  its  best  to  provide  for  more  and  better  plants 
than  itself  when  its  growth  shall  be  stopped  and  its 
life  shall  be  over.  That  is  God's  law.  It  is  the  law 
for  everything,  even  for  a  little  plant,  even  for  the 
cold,  hard  rocks,  to  go  on  and  on  to  better  things. 

Now  as  the  purpose  of  each  plant  is  to  blossom  and 
bear  seeds,  there  must  be  every  arrangement  for 
keeping  them  safe  while  they  grow,  and  for  scattering 
them  when  they  are  ripe. 

Have  you  ever  noticed  how  carefully  the  seeds  are 
kept  in  the  different  plants?    How  they  are  hidden 

28 


PLANTS   SOWING   THEIR  SEEDS  29 

away  under  the  flower  at  first,  and  then,  when  the 
flower  wilts  and  faUs,  how  the  receptacle  grows  larger 
and  larger,  until  the  seeds  are  ripe?  Some  plants  hide 
their  seeds  very  carefully,  like  the  shy  Uttle  violet; 
and  others,  like  the  dandelion,  hold  the  seed  pods 
where  all  can  see  them  and  where  the  wind  can  easily 
scatter  them. 

Every  different  way  in  which  the  seeds  are  cared 
for  and  scattered  is  the  very  best  way  for  that  special 
plant. 

The  violet  does  not  want  to  have  the  wind  take  its 
seeds,  for  the  wind  would  carry  them  to  many  places 
where  they  could  not  grow.  So  the  violet  hides  the 
seed  pods  under  its  cloak  of  leaves.  The  stems  which 
hold  them  grow  longer  and  longer  and  finally,  when 
the  seeds  are  ripe,  the  seed  pods  appear  above  the 
leaves,  split  open  very  suddenly  into  three  parts,  and 
tlirow  the  seeds  around  on  the  ground  about  the 
mother  plant. 

Did  you  ever  see  the  seed  pods  burst  open?  Did 
you  ever  find  them  standing  open  all  empty  except  for 
a  few  tiny,  round,  shiny  seeds  that  were  left  behind 
when  the  others  were  thrown  out?  Perhaps  you  have 
amused  yourself  by  touching  the  ripened  seed  pods 
of  the  garden  balsam  or  the  jewel  weed,  and  watch- 
ing the  seeds  fly  out  when  the  pods  snapped  open  at 
your  touch. 

Not  only  are  these  little  seed  pods  of  the  violet 
hidden  away  from  the  wind,  but  the  seeds  themselves 
are  hard  and  round  so  the  wind  could  not  carry  them 
away.  The  wood  violet  must  grow  in  the  woods.  It 
cannot  afford  to  have  the  wind  take  the  seeds  and 


30         THE  WORLD   IX   WHICH  WE   LIVE 

lose  them;  and  they  would  be  lost  if  the  wind  blew 
them  into  places  where  they  could  not  grow.  So  the 
plant  is  made  to  scatter  the  little  seeds  about  itself 
where  the  soil  is  good  and  the  conditions  are  right. 
There  are  not  many  seeds  and  they  must  be  carefully 
scattered. 

But  with  the  venturesome  dandelion  all  is  differ- 
ent. That  plant  can  grow  anywhere,  and  so  it  flaunts 
its  seed  pod  in  the  air  just  where  the  wind  can  get  at 
it  and  blow  away  the  hosts  of  seeds,  —  anywhere  and 
everywhere.  The  dandelion's  seeds  are  supplied  with 
little  feather-tipped  air-floats,  and  when  they  are  ripe 
and  the  wind  comes  to  get  them,  away  they  sail. 
They  are  quite  able  to  sprout  on  any  ground  where 
the  wind  may  drop  them,  even  if  it  be  upon  a  heap 
of  ashes.  But  until  its  seeds  are  ripe  the  dandelion  is 
just  as  careful  of  them  as  any  other  plant.  If  you 
will  notice  you  will  see  that,  after  the  dandelion  blos- 
som has  wilted,  the  stem  lies  down  upon  the  ground 
until  the  seeds  are  ripe.  Then  up  it  stands,  as  straight 
and  tall  as  w^hen  it  bore  a  beautiful  golden  blossom. 

The  seeds  of  the  thistle  and  milkweed  have  silky 
fibers  that  carry  them  through  the  air  like  balloons; 
while  the  seeds  of  the  clematis  have  long  feathery 
tails  like  plumes,  which  carry  them  far  away  from 
their  parent  plant  when  the  autumn  wind  comes 
along.  The  ash  trees  and  maple  trees  give  wings  to 
their  seeds  so  that  they,  too,  can  be  scattered  far 
and  wide. 

Have  you  ever  watched  a  winged  maple  seed  com- 
ing down  through  the  air?  It  turns  around  and 
around  as  it  sinks,  and  if  it  falls  in  the  grass  or  soft 


PLANTS  SOWING   THEIR  SEEDS  31 

earth,  it  stands  upright  with  the  point  of  the  seed 
sticking  into  the  ground.  From  that  very  end  of  the 
seed  the  roots  begin  to  grow.  So  the  maple  seed  is 
able  not  only  to  go  great  distances  through  the  air, 
but  to  plant  itself  quite  successfully  if  it  comes  to 
rest  in  a  place  where  it  is  possible  to  wedge  even  a 
small  point  into  the  earth. 

The  queer  tumble-weed  is  a  plant  that  carries  away 
and  scatters  its  seeds  itself.  It  does  not  trust  to  any- 
thing else,  and  when  the  seeds  are  ripe  the  roots  dry 
up  and  away  the  top  of  the  tumble-weed  rolls  in  the 
wind. 

There  are  other  plants  which  depend  upon  their 
seeds  being  carried  about  by  animals  or  people.  They 
have  little  hooks  by  which  they  fasten  themselves  to 
the  fur  of  animals  or  to  our  clothing.  These  are  very 
disagreeable  seeds.  How  we  dislike  to  come  back 
from  a  walk  and  find  our  clothes  covered  with  burs 
or  with  sticktights  or  with  beggar-needles!  Did  you 
ever  see  a  poor  dog  trying  to  get  burs  off  his  coat,  or 
a  cow  with  the  hair  on  the  end  of  her  tail  all  matted 
together  with  them?  Yet,  disagreeable  as  they  may 
be  to  us  and  our  dogs  and  cattle,  these  seeds  are  inter- 
esting because  they  show  how  carefully  eveiything  is 
planned  to  fulfill  a  distinct  purpose. 

The  birds  and  squirrels  do  their  share  toward  carry- 
ing seeds  and  so  spreading  plants  about.  Their  work 
is  most  useful  for  they  carry  the  seeds  of  berries  and 
fruits,  plants  which  we  are  very  anxious  to  have  in- 
crease. For  many  plants  hide  their  seeds  in  a  fruit, 
and  many  more  have  seeds  large  enough  to  furnish 
food  for  birds  and  animals  and  man. 


32         THE   WORLD   IN   WHICH   WE   LIVE 

Have  you  ever  noticed  how  many  cherry  stones  a 
bu*d  will  drop  around  upon  the  ground?  You  often 
find  cherry  stones  in  the  woods  or  open  fields  far 
away  from  any  cherry  tree.  Birds  scatter  blue- 
berries and  blackberries  and  strawberries  about,  and 
the  crows  scatter  corn. 

Squirrels  are  very  fond  of  pears.  They  run  up  our 
pear  trees  and  sit  up  in  the  branches  eating  our  finest 
fruit,  throwing  down  upon  us,  as  if  to  mock  us,  only 
the  cores.  They  are  especially  fond  of  nuts,  which 
are  the  seeds  of  the  trees  that  bear  them,  and  these 
they  collect  most  busily  in  the  autumn  and  store 
away  for  the  winter,  some  of  them  in  little  under- 
ground storerooms.  Often  the  squirrels  gather  more 
nuts  than  they  eat  and  those  that  are  left  in  these 
storerooms  sprout  and  grow  into  oak  trees,  chestnut 
trees,  butternut  and  walnut  trees. 

Every  one  of  you  must  have  seen  a  scarecrow  and 
you  all  know  why  the  farmers  put  them  in  their  corn- 
fields. The  crows  eat  the  corn  that  is  just  planted, 
and  that  is  a  great  trouble  to  the  farmers.  But,  long, 
long  ago,  before  the  farmers  planted  corn,  the  crows 
used  to  eat  it  and  carry  the  seeds  away.  They  planted 
corn  in  their  way  then,  as  the  farmers  do  in  their  way 
now.  Perhaps  if  the  crows  had  not  carried  away  the 
corn  and  dropped  it  in  different  places  in  those  long- 
ago  days,  we  ourselves  should  have  no  nice  corn  to  eat. 

We  do  not  like  to  have  the  crows  eat  our  corn,  or 
the  birds  take  our  cherries  or  strawberries  or  black- 
berries, or  the  squirrels  hide  away  all  our  butternuts 
or  chestnuts.  But  we  must  remember  that  they  were 
at  work  helping  these  plants  to  distribute  their  seeds 


PLANTS   SOWING   THEIR  SEEDS  33 

long  before  men  thought  to  plant  them  at  all.  This 
is  the  food  they  have  lived  on  for  ages,  and  for  ages 
they  have  eaten  the  fruits  and  nuts  and  have  helped 
the  plants  at  the  same  time  by  distributing  the  seeds, 
just  as  the  bees  help  the  flowers  when  they  are  busy 
getting  their  own  food  from  them.  Isn't  it  interesting 
to  learn  how  the  animals  and  plants  help  each  other 
day  by  day? 

The  plants'  helpers  are  God's  helpers,  too. 

All  are  needed  by  each  one; 
Nothing  is  fair  or  good  alone. 

The  birds  and  the  bees,  the  squirrels,  and  the  wind 
are  His  servants,  doing  their  share  to  make  our  world 
better  and  more  beautiful.  And  we,  when  we  plant 
seeds  —  flower  seeds,  fruit  seeds,  or  those  of  trees  or 
vegetables  —  are  helping  the  whole  world  as  much  as 
ourselves.  If  we  take  care  of  the  gardens  and  try  to 
have  each  plant  healthy  and  well  formed  we  are 
making  more  beautiful  and  useful  the  wonderful 
garment  the  earth  wears. 


LESSON   5 
THE   TREES 

MEMORY  VERSE 

Blessed  is  the  man  that  trusteth  in  the  Lord,  and  whose  hope  the 
Lord  is.  For  he  shall  be  as  a  tree  planted  by  the  waters,  and  that 
spreadeth  out  her  roots  by  the  river.  Jffr.  17:  7,  8 

The  Purpose 

The  purpose  of  this  lesson  is  to  give  the  child  a  ghmpse 
of  the  unity  which  exists  throughout  God's  universe,  and 
to  open  his  eyes  to  the  fact  that  our  physical  lives  are  not 
so  unlike  the  physical  lives  of  other  living  things  about  us. 

The  part  of  our  life  which  is  vastly  different  from  that 
of  plants  and  animals  is  the  spiritual  nature.  That  is 
developed  only  by  reaching  up  to  the  light  of  God's 
presence. 

We  must  make  the  effort  to  reach  God's  hght  just  as 
the  trees  must  grow  by  reaching  up  or  spreading  out  to 
receive  the  greatest  possible  amount  of  sunshine. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

All  children  naturally  love  trees  and  invest  them  with 
an  almost  mysterious  life.  When  telling  the  story  make 
the  life-formation  of  a  tree  seem  real  and  vital.  Picture 
it  not  as  something  mechanical,  but  as  a  living  thing  that 
reaches  out  with  its  roots,  its  branches  and  its  leaves. 
The  activity  of  the  tree  is  what  we  wish  the  children  to 
understand. 

34 


THE   TREES  35 

Dwell  upon  the  need  of  sunlight  and  the  tree's  active 
search  for  it,  and  lead  the  children  to  feel  that  we,  too, 
must  endeavor  to  lead  a  life  that  is  full  of  God's  sunlight. 

Bring  to  the  class  the  end  of  a  branch  from  an  oak,  a 
horse-chestnut,  a  pine,  an  elm,  or  a  birch,  and  show  the 
children  how  one  leaf  differs  from  another  on  the  same 
branch,  and  how  differently  they  are  carried  on  the  ends 
of  the  branches  and  fitted  in  together  to  receive  all  of  the 
sunlight. 

Show  the  under  side  of  the  leaves  when  that  point  is 
reached  in  the  story,  so  all  the  class  can  see  how  different 
it  is  from  the  upper  surface. 

Think  of  some  well-known  place  which  covers  about 
one-half  an  acre  and  refer  to  it  when  telling  of  the  maple 
leaves. 

Hand  Work 

Ask  each  child  to  choose  some  great  tree  that  is  ac- 
cessible and  visit  it  often,  thinking  of  it  as  his  tree  and 
learning  from  it  all  the  tree  has  to  tell  him. 

Upon  the  top  of  the  sheet  which  accompanies  the  leaflet 
have  the  pupil  write  the  name  of  his  tree,  and  paste  below 
one  or  more  pressed  leaves  from  it. 

OPENING    TALK 

Are  all  the  seeds  that  come  up  in  the  spring  sown  by 
man?  Can  you  tell  some  of  the  means  nature  uses  to 
scatter  seeds?  What  seeds  did  you  find?  Tell  me  how 
they  are  sown.  Does  the  parent  plant  always  wish  to 
scatter  the  seeds  far  away?  What  has  been  helping  the 
flowers  for  a  very  much  longer  time  than  man  has? 

Even  the  great  trees  come  from  seeds,  and  bear  seeds 
which  may  be  sown  by  the  wind,  by  animals  or  by  man. 
Let  us  think  to-day  how  a  tree  grows. 


THE  TREES 

When  you  walk  through  a  deep,  deep  wood  do  you 
ever  look  up  into  the  trees?  Do  you  see  the  great, 
solid  trunk,  and  the  spreading  branches,  and  the  in- 
numerable leaves  that  dance  and  rustle  together  at 
the  slightest  breath  of  wind?  And  have  you  noticed 
how  different  the  leaves  are  upon  the  different  trees, 
and  in  how  many  ways  they  spread  or  hang  upon  the 
fine  twigs  at  the  ends  of  the  branches? 

There  are  so  many  leaves  it  seems  as  if  they  must 
be  crowded,  but  when  you  look  closely  you  will  find 
that  each  leaf  has  plenty  of  room.  It  is  only  when 
the  wind  blows  that  the  leaves  interfere  with  each 
other.  When  the  wind  stops  playing  with  the  leaves 
each  one  has  its  own  place,  quite  undisturbed  by  its 
neighbors. 

How  does  it  happen  that  every  leaf,  among  the 
thousands  on  a  tree,  has  its  own  place  and  grows  un- 
hampered by  its  neighbor  leaves?  It  does  not  hap- 
pen. It  is  all  planned  and  arranged  to  be  so.  It  does 
not  just  happen  that  your  hands  can  reach  your 
mouth,  or  that  you  can  digest  the  food  you  eat.  That 
was  God's  plan  for  mankind. 

And  strange  as  it  may  seem,  the  trees  are  not  so 
very  different  from  us  in  the  way  they  live  and  grow, 
for  they,  too,  take  in  food  and  have  it  digested.  Only 
their  mouths  are  underground  and  the  place  where 

3() 


THE  TREES  37 

the  food  is  digested  is  not  inside  the  trunk,  but  in  the 
leaves.  Just  the  other  way  around  from  us,  yet  quite 
as  wonderful. 

Think  for  a  moment  about  the  long  roots  of  the 
tree.  You  know  that  they  fasten  the  tree  into  the 
ground  and  hold  it  firmly,  but  do  you  know  that#those 
roots  spread  outwards  in  a  fine  network  of  hairlike 
rootlets  that  are  drinking  in  food  for  the  tree  as  well 
as  holding  it  steadfast  and  making  it  secure  against 
the  wind?  The  tree  is  hke  a  hving  pump,  and  up  into 
it  from  all  those  hair-like,  interlaced  roots  gallons  of 
water  are  forced  every  day.  The  rootlets  suck  it  up 
through  their  millions  of  tiny  mouths;  it  is  pumped 
by  the  sunshine  up  the  trunk  of  the  tree  and  into 
the  leaves  where  it  is  made  over  into  the  sap  which 
nourishes  the  tree  and  makes  it  grow.  The  leaves  are 
little  kitchens  where  the  water  and  the  mineral  salts 
it  contains  are  prepared  for  the  use  of  the  whole 
tree. 

Now  where  should  you  think  the  heat  comes  from 
that  is  used  to  prepare  this  food  in  those  tiny  kitch- 
ens? From  the  sun,  of  course.  So  each  leaf  must  hang 
free  and  have  its  own  place  where  it  can  receive  the 
life-giving  sunshine  and  breathe  in  the  air.  Every 
leaf  is  looked  out  for  most  carefully  so  that  it  shall 
have  sunshine  and  air,  and  God  has  planned  each  tree 
so  that  it  can  provide  for  its  leaves. 

A  tree  that  has  broad,  heavy  leaves  like  the  horse- 
chestnut,  holds  them  stiffly  and  in  an  exact  pattern  so 
that  each  leaf  will  stand  out  free  from  its  neighbor, 
yet  so  that  all  the  leaves  will  fit  together  and  take  in 
the  sunlight  without  leaving  waste  spaces.    The  oak 


38         THE   WORLD   IN   WHICH   WE   LIVE 

tree  arranges  its  leaves  so  that  they  are  held  out  flat 
or  slope  down  a  little.  They  are  long  and  irregular 
in  shape  and  there  is  room  for  many  more  of  them 
than  of  the  great  horse-chestnut  leaves.  The  elm 
carries  its  small,  oval  leaves  on  long,  slender,  droop- 
ing bj*anches  and  the  finest  of  twigs,  and  in  that  way 
it  can  give  free  air  and  sunlight  to  thousands  and 
thousands  of  leaves.  Look  at  the  great,  white  pine 
with  its  branches  of  needles,  five  in  a  bunch,  and 
yet  all  held  out  erect  and  free  like  a  beautiful 
blue-green  pompon,  each  needle  untouched  by  its 
neighbors. 

A  full-grown  maple  has  enough  leaves  upon  it  to 
cover  one-half  an  acre  of  ground.  Think  of  all  those 
leaves  being  planned  for!  Think  of  the  maple  tree 
growing  in  such  a  way,  with  just  so  many  branches 
and  small  twigs  as  will  hold  all  those  leaves  free  and 
unhampered!  You  did  not  realize  that  a  tree  took 
care  of  itself  like  that  when  it  was  growing,  did 
you? 

Now  the  leaves  on  the  different  trees  and  vshrubs 
and  plants  are  quite  unlike.  The  shape  of  the  leaves 
and  their  texture  suits  the  tree  or  plant  to  which  they 
belong.  The  broad,  heavy  horse-chestnut  leaf  is 
held  up  by  a  stout,  stiff  twig.  The  vslender,  drooping 
branches  of  the  elm  or  birch  would  be  weighed  down 
and  broken  by  such  great  leaves,  and  moreover,  if  the 
horse-chestnut  leaves  were  not  held  out  quite  stiff 
and  straight  they  would  interfere,  for  they  are  so 
large  that  they  could  not  help  getting  in  each  other's 
way.  Try  to  think  how  a  horse-chestnut  leaf  would 
look  upon  the  dainty  twigs  of  the  elm  tree! 


THE   TREES  39 

While  tlie  roots  are  spreading  out  under  the 
ground  in  search  of  water  which  is  taken  up  into  the 
leaves,  the  leaves  themselves,  besides  making  over 
the  water-food  into  sap,  help  to  provide  the  roots 
with  water.  For  they  are  arranged  like  the  shingles 
on  the  roof  of  a  house  and  shed  the  rain-water  from 
the  trees  so  that  it  will  fall  upon  the  ground  directly 
over  the  place  where  the  finest  rootlets,  with  the  most 
active  mouths,  are  growing.  Isn't  it  wonderful  how 
a  tree  is  planned?  The  most  active  rootlets  are 
directly  under  the  place  where  the  leaves  shed  the 
water.  The  tree  cannot  go  about  to  get  its  food  and 
drink,  so  by  dripping  rain  to  the  ground  just  over  its 
rootlets  the  tree  helps  itself  to  get  the  needed  supply 
of  water. 

Upon  the  ground  near  the  trunk  of  the  tree,  where 
the  older  roots  carry  the  water  instead  of  sucking  it 
up,  the  rain  does  not  fall  in  great  quantities.  You 
have  seen  the  dry  places  left  on  the  sidewalk 
near  the  trunk  of  a  tree  when  it  has  rained;  and 
you  know  how  the  rain  will  beat  down  upon  your 
umbrella  from  the  leaves  at  the  outer  edge  [of  the 
tree. 

Some  leaves,  like  those  of  the  oak  and  maple,  are 
smooth  and  glossy,  and  shed  the  water  quickly,  and 
some  are  hairy  like  the  mullein,  where  the  water 
stands  upon  the  leaf  in  great  drops.  Too  much  water 
would  interfere  with  the  work  of  the  leaf  by  clogging 
up  the  tiny  pores  through  which  it  breathes,  and  so 
most  of  the  breathing  is  done  by  the  under  side. 

Have  you  ever  noticed  how  different  the  under  side 
of  a  leaf  is  from  the  upper  side?    The  color  is  differ- 


40         THE   WORLD    IX    WHICH   WE   LIVE 

cut,  the  veins  stand  out  more,  and  the  skin  of  the  leaf 
is  more  porous.  For  even  leaves  have  skin.  The 
outer  covering  of  all  leaves  is  a  thin  and  transparent 
membrane  that  does  for  the  leaf  what  our  skin  does 
for  us. 

Some  trees  do  not  have  all  the  sunlight  they  need. 
Can  you  think  what  trees  those  are?  Forest  trees? 
Yes,  in  the  forest  the  sun  can  reach  only  the  tops  of 
the  trees.  Have  you  ever  noticed  the  difference 
between  a  forest  tree  and  the  same  kind  of  a  tree 
growing  in  the  open  field?  The  forest  trees  have  tall, 
straight,  slender  trunks,  with  no  live  branches  upon 
them  except  near  the  top  of  the  tree. 

In  the  open  field  a  tree  has  plenty  of  room  and  sun- 
light and  it  grows  into  its  own  natural  shape,  with 
great  spreading  branches,  and  with  the  whole  body 
of  the  tree  covered  with  leaves.  All  those  leaves  have 
sunlight,  and  the  tree  puts  forth  as  many  as  the  space 
permits.  But  the  forest  tree  can  only  get  sunlight  by 
growing  straight  up  toward  it.  If  it  does  not  reach 
the  light  with  its  leaves  it  must  die,  because  without 
sunlight  the  leaves  cannot  provide  the  proper  nour- 
ishment for  the  tree.  They  would  be  like  kitchens 
without  a  fire!  Some  of  the  trees  in  the  woods  have 
died  for  this  reason. 

But  the  trees  that  grew  straight  up,  reaching  al- 
ways for  the  sunlight,  have  lived.  The  lower 
branches  have  died,  and,  as  the  trees  grew  older,  have 
fallen  off  and  left  the  trunks  tall  and  smooth  almost 
to  the  top.  There  at  the  top  the  leaves  form  a  canopy 
so  thick  that  only  little  patches  of  sunUght  ever  reach 
the  forest  floor. 


THE   TREES  41 

Like  the  forest  tree,  we,  too,  must  reach  up  into 
the  hght.  The  hght  of  God's  presence  is  to  us  in  our 
Uves  what  the  sunhght  is  to  the  forest  tree.  For  it  is 
that  Hght  shining  into  our  souls  which  makes  us  grow 
to  be  true  children  of  God. 


LESSON   6 
HOW  PLANTS  LIVE  TOGETHER 

MEMORY  VERSE 

The  earth,  O  Lord,  is  full  of  thy  loving-kindness: 
Teach  me  thy  statutes. 

Ps.  119:64 

The  Purpose 

The  "struggle  for  existence"  is  touched  upon  in  this 
lesson,  but  in  such  a  way  as  not  to  be  oppressive  to  the 
child's  nature.  The  adaptation  of  the  plant  and  its  nec- 
essary struggle  will  be  found  to  exhilarate  and  awaken 
the  spirit  of  courage.  The  different  means  by  which  the 
plants  adapt  themselves  to  their  surroundings,  and  the 
marvelous  order  that  runs  through  all  things,  should  be 
a  lesson  in  faith. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

In  teaching  this  lesson  impress  upon  the  children  the 
fact  that  very  few  of  the  trees  and  plants  have  all  the 
conditions  of  growth  perfect.  They  must  all  adapt  them- 
selves to  their  surroundings  in  some  way,  even  if  it  be  in 
the  long  sleep  of  the  seed  awaiting  its  chance  to  come  up. 

The  description  of  the  ways  in  which  different  plants 
adapt  themselves  to  their  surroundings  will  interest  the 
child,  whereas  the  picture  of  the  plant  struggling  against 
adverse  conditions  would  depress  him.  Make  this  struggle 
an  interesting  one. 

42 


HOW  PLANTS   LIVE  TOGETHER  43 

Hand  Work 

Let  each  child  make  a  list  on  the  leaflet  of  all  the 
plant  societies  he  can  think  of,  and  opposite  each  write 
the  names  of  two  plants  or  of  a  plant  and  a  tree  that 
would  be  found  in  that  society. 


OPENING   TALK 

Who  has  visited  a  great  tree  since  the  last  lesson? 
(Let  each  child  tell  about  the  tree  visited  and  describe 
its  trunk,  branches  and  leaves.)  Let  us  see  the  leaves 
that  you  have  pressed  and  mounted. 

What  is  it  that  the  tree  must  always  find?  Water, 
yes,  with  its  roots,  but  sunlight,  also,  with  its  leaves.  It 
must  always  lift  its  head  up  to  the  sunlight,  if  it  is  going 
to  live.     Is  this  always  easy  to  do? 

Our  story  to-day  will  tell  us  some  of  the  difficulties 
plants  and  trees  meet,  and  how  they  make  the  best  of 
the  conditions  they  find. 


HOW  PLANTS  LIVE  TOGETHER 

Of  all  the  millions  and  millions  of  seeds  which 
settle  down  into  the  ground  every  autumn,  how  many 
do  you  suppose  come  up?  All  of  them?  Oh,  no. 
There  never  would  be  room  for  them  all.  What 
would  become  of  our  orchards  if  every  seed  in  every 
apple  which  a  large  apple  tree  bore  should  grow  into 
an  apple  tree  itself?  We  should  have  an  apple  forest 
and  that  would  never  do,  for  an  apple  tree  could  not 
bear  fruit  if  it  were  crowded  like  a  forest  tree,  and 
had  to  grow  tall  and  slender  without  its  spreading 
branches.  Do  you  not  know  how  few  chestnuts  you 
find  on  a  chestnut  tree  that  is  crowded  among  other 
trees  in  the  woods? 

No,  the  earth  has  not  room  for  all  the  seeds  to  grow, 
but  she  sows  plenty  so  she  may  be  sure  to  have 
enough  plants.  Indeed,  .she  must  always  provide  for 
more  than  enough.  So  she  scatters  her  seeds  broad- 
cast over  the  ground,  and  as  many  as  can,  come  up. 
Many  of  the  others  just  sleep  a  little  longer  and  wait 
their  time. 

Have  you  not  seen  blueberry  bushes  growing  in  a 
wood  that  had  been  cut  down  or  burned  over? 
Where  did  they  come  from?  There  were  no  blue- 
berry bushes  there  before.  Did  the  birds  drop  seeds 
enough  throughout  the  wood  to  make  all  those  blue- 
berry bushes?    Or  were  there  some  blueberries  grow- 

44 


HOW   PLANTS   LIVE   TOGETHER  45 

ing  there  years  and  years  ago,  when  the  tall  trees 
that  had  just  been  cut  down  were  young  bushes,  and 
have  the  little  seeds  slept  there  all  that  time? 

No  one  can  tell.  In  whatever  way  the  seeds  may 
have  become  buried  in  the  earth  where  a  wood  was 
growing,  when  the  trees  are  cut  down  or  burned  over 
up  they  will  come.  It  is  just  the  same  with  many 
other  seeds,  they  will  lie  asleep  for  years  and  never 
wake  until  they  have  a  good  opportunity  to  grow. 
If  the  ground  does  not  seem  comfortable  and 
homelike  to  the  seeds,  they  will  not  start  to  grow 
at  all. 

The  seeds  of  the  great  willow  herb,  which  we  call 
fireweed,  are  scattered  abroad  every  fall,  but  only 
a  few  come  up  from  year  to  year,  unless,  indeed,  the 
ground  has  been  burned  over  by  a  fire.  Then  up  they 
come  in  masses  on  that  burned  ground.  A  brush  pile 
burned  in  the  woods,  or  some  railroad  ties  burned  by 
the  side  of  the  road,  give  the  seeds  the  sort  of  soil  they 
like  and  up  they  come. 

Where  were  the  seeds  before  the  ground  was 
burned?  How  did  so  many  of  them  get  to  that  spot 
of  burned  earth?  No  fireweed  had  been  growing 
there  before.  We  do  not  know.  We  can  only  say 
that  the  seeds  have  slept. 

Suppose  there  was  a  little  pansy  seed  that  had 
fallen  where  the  sun  shone  too  hot  and  too  long. 
The  pansy  loves  the  shade,  so  the  seed  would  not 
feel  comfortable  or  at  home  where  the  earth  was 
baked  by  the  sun  and  it  would  lie  asleep.  But  while 
it  was  sleeping  another  seed,  which  was  lying  near  by, 
might  come  up  and  grow  into  a  plant  that  shaded 


46         THE  WORLD   IN   WHICH  WE   LIVE 

the  ground  where  the  pansy  seed  lay.  Up,  then, 
would  come  the  pansy  and  soon  there  would  be  little 
pansy  faces  bobbing  and  laughing  where  no  one  re- 
membered ever  having  seen  them  before. 

All  over  the  world  there  are  places  where  certain 
plants  will  grow  together,  because  they  like  the  same 
conditions  of  soil  or  moisture,  sun  or  shade,  and 
wherever  you  find  one  of  these  plants  you  will  be 
quite  Hkely  to  find  others.  These  are  called  ''Plant 
Societies." 

Isn't  that  an  odd  name  for  a  group  of  plants 
growing  together?  That  word  seems  to  belong  to 
people  instead  of  plants,  doesn't  it?  And  yet  the 
plants  do  just  what  the  people  in  a  society  do,  pick 
out  and  choose  those  others  near  which  they  will 
grow  best. 

The  starry-eyed  little  hepatica  likes  to  grow,  in 
an  oak  grove  that  stands  on  the  side  of  a  hill,  where 
the  little  plant  can  be  almost  buried  in  oak  leaves. 
The  barberry  bush  likes  to  grow  beside  a  stone  wall. 
Many  other  thorned  bushes  choose  a  stone  wall, 
too,  so  where  the  barberry  bush  grows  you  will 
often  find  blackberry  bushes  and  black  raspberries. 

There  are  certain  plants  that  like  marshy  ground 
and  many  others  that  gTow  in  the  water.  The  arrow- 
head and  pickerel  weed  stand  waist  deep  in  water  and 
are  almost  always  found  together;  and  where  they 
grow  you  will  probably  find  also  the  yellow  pond 
lily  and  the  beautiful  white  water  lily. 

These  water-loving  plants  have  their  roots  in  the 
earth;  but  there  are  water  plants  in  the  ponds  and 
rivers  which  grow  by  merely  floating  in  the  water. 


HOW  PLANTS   LIVE  TOGETHER  47 

Many  of  them  are  so  small  they  would  hardly  be 
noticed,  but  they  are  all  wonderfully  provided  with 
bladder-like  sacs  for  floating  the  little  plant,  au- 
chambers  for  aid  in  breathing  and  tiny  crossbars  to 
act  as  rafts  to  keep  the  flower  stems  erect  so  that 
the  flowers  shall  be  out  of  the  water.  Such  wonder- 
ful provision  God  makes  for  all  His  works!  He  pro- 
vides for  the  Uttle  bladderwort  floating  in  the  pond 
as  well  as  for  the  great,  sturdy  oak  growing  upon 
the  side  of  a  hill. 

Can  you  think  of  some  of  the  other  societies  of 
plants? 

There  is  the  swamp  society,  where  the  cat-tail 
flag  and  the  bulrushes  grow,  and  where  the  larch 
and  hemlock  trees  make  dense  forests,  into  which 
the  sun  never  seems  to  be  able  to  shine  down  upon 
the  thickly  growing  ferns.  There  is  the  rock  society. 
What  dainty  plants  grow  upon  those  great  tumbled 
rocks  and  high  cliffs.  The  red  and  yellow  horns  of 
the  columbine  and  the  little  pink  and  yellow  flowers 
of  the  pale  corydalis  nod  to  you  from  the  clefts  of 
the  rocks  in  among  the  fern  fronds.  On  the  smooth 
rocks  the  rock  saxifrage  fits  its  pretty  rosette  into 
every  possible  crack,  while  the  soft,  green  mosses 
creep  up  and  up  trying  to  cover  the  space. 

There  are  the  sand  societies.  The  sand  hills  which 
the  grass  keeps  from  blowing  away  is  one  place 
where  they  are  found;  the  desert  is  another,  where 
the  cactus,  the  yucca  and  the  century  plant  find  the 
hidden  water  and  store  it  up  for  future  use.  The 
gravelly  hillsides  or  open  land  make  another,  where 
the  white  birches  and  pitch  pines  grow,  and  where 


48         THE  WORLD   IN   WHICH   WE   LIVE 

the  pink  moccasin  flower  stands  up  straight  and  tall 
between  its  two  long,  slender  leaves. 

There  are  the  forest  societies  and  the  societies  of 
the  mountain  tops  where  the  trees  cannot  grow  and 
where  only  the  little  Alpine  flowers  and  strange 
looking  mosses  grow  up  to  the  foot  of  the  melting 
ice.  And  there  is  the  great  society  which  we  know 
best,  that  of  the  ordinary  fields  and  roadsides. 

Now  in  whatever  society  a  plant  belongs  there  it 
will  grow  best.  It  may  be  able  to  live  in  another, 
but  it  will  not  thrive.  Trees  which  grow  so  large 
and  spreading  upon  the  river  bank  will  die  if  the  river 
is  so  full  that  they  stand  continually  in  the  water, 
as  the  plants  of  the  marsh  society  do.  The  pretty 
columbine  nodding  from  a  cleft  in  the  rock  could 
not  live  in  the  open  fields  with  the  bird's-foot  violet. 
Nevertheless  it  is  quite  wonderful  to  see  what 
some  plants  will  do  to  adapt  themselves  to  hard 
conditions. 

Those  forest  trees  that  grow  up  straight  and  tall 
to  reach  the  sunlight  do  not  die,  even  if  they  are  some- 
what crowded.  The  trees  that  grow  upon  the  open 
hillsides  have  to  do  battle  with  the  wind ;  they  cannot 
grow  as  tall  as  does  the  tree  on  the  level  plain.  They 
must  grow  strong  to  be  able  to  withstand  the  wind. 
The  energy  which  the  forest  trees  use  to  grow  tall 
they  must  use  to  grow  strong. 

In  a  time  of  very  dry  weather  many  plants  will 
move  their  leaves.  The  Indian  corn  will  roll  up  its 
long  leaves  to  save  the  moisture  in  them  from  being 
evaporated  and  the  sensitive  plant  will  shut  to- 
gether the  small  leaflets  which  compose  the  large 


HOW  PLANTS   LIVE  TOGETHER  49 

leaves.  Sometimes  it  shuts  up  only  a  few,  but  if 
the  drought  is  severe  the  sensitive  plant  will  shut 
up  all  of  them.  It  will  shut  up  its  leaflets,  too,  if 
you  touch  or  jar  the  plant. 

Now  who  would  have  thought  that  plants  moved 
their  own  leaves?  Yet,  if  you  watch  mamma's  plants 
in  the  window  you  will  see  that  they  do.  Turn 
around  a  flowerpot  that  has  been  standing  where 
the  sun  has  shone  upon  only  one  part  of  it  and  see 
what  will  happen. 

Some  leaves  will  turn  their  edges  to  the  sun  when 
it  is  very  hot  to  save  themselves  from  being  dried 
up.  These  compass-plants,  as  they  are  called,  point 
their  leaves  north  and  south.  They  grow  in  the 
desert,  and  many  a  traveler  is  glad  enough  to  find 
one  when  he  has  lost  his  way  and  the  day  is  cloudy. 
When  the  compass-plant  happens  to  grow  in  a 
shady  place  the  leaves  lie  flat  like  those  of  other 
plants. 

Then  some  leaves  go  to  sleep!  You  have  seen 
flowers  go  to  sleep  and  open  again  the  next  day. 
The  four-o'clock  and  the  portulaca  close  their  petals 
when  their  day  is  over  and  wake  up  again  on  the 
next.  But  did  you  ever  see  leaves  go  to  sleep? 
Watch  the  oxalis  in  the  hanging  basket  close  its 
little  three-lobed  leaves  when  night  comes  on. 

Does  it  seem  strange  to  you  that  plants  should 
have  some  motion  of  their  own?  And  strange,  too, 
that  seeds  should  sleep  longer  if  they  do  not  find  the 
conditions  right  for  their  growth? 

It  does  seem  strange.  Yet  God  does  not  give 
His  creations  any  law  to  follow  which  they  have  no 


50         THE   WORLD   IN   WHICH   WE   LIVE 

chance  to  obey.  He  has  given  the  seeds  the  power 
to  wait  their  turn  and  plants  the  power  to  help 
themselves,  and  in  so  doing  they  help  to  preserve 
the  law  and  order  of  the  world. 


LES-SON   7 
THE  EARTH   OUR   STOREHOUSE 


MEMORY  VERSE 

He  causeth  the  grass  to  grow  for  the  cattle, 

And  herb  for  the  labor  of  man; 

That  he  may  bring  forth  bread  out  of  the  earth. 

Ps.  104:  14  (R.  V.  Margin) 

The  Purpose 

This  lesson,  the  last  in  Part  I,  shows  how  man's  co- 
operation with  the  vegetable  world  has  been  a  benefit 
both  to  himself  and  to  the  plants  and  fruits. 

The  lesson  of  mutual  helpfulness  is  again  to  be  brought 
out  here  as  it  was  in  Lesson  3.  The  improvement  in  the 
''grass  of  the  field"  by  man's  cultivation  is  well  suggested 
in  the  verse  from  the  Bible.  The  use  of  the  translation 
given  in  the  margin  brings  out  the  thought  more  clearly. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

The  story  of  the  birds  and  the  berries  is  introduced  to 
show  how  the  cultivation  of  plants  might  have  begun. 
It  is  true  that  some  new  varieties  of  fruits  have  come 
from  seeds  probably  dropped  by  birds. 

Impress  upon  the  children  the  fact  that  man  by  co- 
operating with  nature  is  fulfilling  God's  purpose,  and 
that  it  must  improve  both  himself  and  that  with  which 
he  deals. 

Help  them  to  see  the  whole  vegetable  kingdom  as 
full  of  law  and  order.     Bring  out  the  thought  that  the 

51 


52         THE   WORLD   IN   WHICH   WE   LIVE 

improvement  in  man  through  his  efforts  to  cultivate 
better  fruits  and  grains  is  one  of  God's  laws.  When  we 
learn  to  know  God's  laws  we  learn  to  trust  Him. 

Hand  Work 

Let  each  child  make  a  list  of  fruits  and  grains  that  we 
use  as  food.  The  work  should  be  done  independently  at 
home  and  be  brought  to  the  class  the  next  Sunday  for 
comparison. 

OPENING    TALK 

Wliy  do  not  all  seeds  dropped  on  the  ground  come  up 
the  next  spring?  What  happens  to  some  that  sleep 
longer?     What  does  this  do  for  our  earth? 

What  do  we  call  groups  of  plants  that  grow  together? 
Where  do  all  plants  grow  best?  How  can  plants  and  seeds 
help  themselves? 

Do  you  remember  the  story  of  the  bees  and  the  flowers 
and  how  they  helped  each  other?  Here  is  another  of  the 
same  sort  about  the  birds  and  the  berries.  It  will  show 
us  how  by  cultivation  and  improvement  of  plants  our 
earth  has  come  to  be  a  storehouse  to  which  we  turn  for 
our  food. 


THE   EARTH   OUR   STOREHOUSE 

The  birds  and  the  berries  make  almost  as  wonderful 
a  story  as  the  bees  and  the  flowers,  for  the  birds  as 
well  as  the  bees  are  good  fairies  to  the  plants. 

Suppose  that  long,  long  ago  a  low  bush  was  grow- 
ing on  a  rocky  hillside,  doing  the  best  it  could  to  get 
water  and  food  enough  from  the  dry,  barren  soil, 
not  only  to  grow,  but  to  blossom  and  ripen  its 
seeds.  The  seeds  of  this  bush  were  not,  like  those 
of  the  wood  violet,  encased  in  a  hard,  dry  seed 
pod.  They  grew  in  a  bunch  about  the  size  of  the 
end  of  your  little  finger  and  each  seed  was  covered 
with  a  soft,  juicy  covering,  so  that  the  whole  looked 
like  a  collection  of  very  small  black  balls. 

It  was  a  blackberry  bush  growing  there  upon 
that  rocky  hillside.  But  the  blackberries  on  that 
struggling  bush  were  not  very  good;  they  were 
mostly  seeds  with  a  scanty  covering  of  pulp.  If 
you  had  picked  one  and  eaten  it  you  would  have 
made  a  wry  face  and  gone  on  without  picking  an- 
other. The  berries  were  neither  sweet  nor  juicy, 
although  they  looked  good  to  eat. 

But  the  plant  was  contented  with  its  fruit,  even 
if  the  few  people  who  tried  it  in  those  long-ago  days 
were  not.  A  rocky  hillside  was  the  natural  home 
of  the  blackberry  bush.  It  was  quite  used  to  get- 
ting along  without  much  water.     The  leaves  were 

53 


54         THE  WORLD   IN   WHICH   WE  LIVE 

rather  thin,  the  blossoms  were  small  and  the  seeds 
were  large  and  hard,  with  only  the  least  bit  of  the 
juicy  black  covering. 

But  although  the  people  who  tried  the  fruit  did  not 
like  it,  and  only  ate  it  when  they  were  very  hungry  or 
when  they  happened  to  see  an  especially  large  berry, 
the  birds  did  like  the  fruit.  They  ate  as  many  berries 
as  they  could  find,  and  often  when  carrying  them  off 
to  their  baby  birds  in  the  nest  they  dropped  many  as 
they  flew,  just  as  they  do  now. 

Many  of  those  berries  would  fall  on  other  rocky 
hillsides  or  on  open,  dry  pastures,  and  those  seeds 
would  sprout  and  grow  into  plants  like  their  parent 
bushes,  and  bear  no  better  fruit.  But  some  seeds 
in  that  long-ago  time  fell  on  moist  ground.  Perhaps 
the  blackberry  seeds  lay  asleep  in  such  a  place  for  a 
long,  long  time,  just  as  if  it  were  winter  all  the  year, 
and  never  tried  to  come  up  at  all.  It  may  be  that 
the  birds  dropped  many  blackberries  in  rich,  moist 
pastures  before  there  was  one  little  seed  brave 
enough  to  sprout. 

''I  will  try  it,"  thought  the  seed,  ''I  cannot  lie 
here  asleep  forever  and  live.  I  might  just  as  well 
start  out." 

So,  although  the  little  seed  did  not  feel  any  more 
at  home  in  that  soft,  rich  earth  than  the  pauper 
felt  in  the  palace  of  the  prince,  it  ventured  to  send 
its  tiny  rootlets  cautiously  down  and  then  to  reach 
up  toward  the  sun  with  the  first  two  tiny  leaves. 

The  rootlets  grew  fast  and  sank  deeper  and  deeper 
into  the  soft,  dark  earth,  and  the  leaves  opened  out 
one  by  one,   quite  large  and  fresh  and  beautiful. 


THE   EARTH   OUR  STOREHOUSE  55 

The  brave  little  seed  had  grown  into  a  fine,  healthy 
plant,  and  the  sweet,  white  blossoms  were  quite  the 
largest  blackberry  blossoms  that  ever  had  been. 
It  was  just  the  same  with  the  fruit.  Instead  of 
being  the  size  of  the  tip  of  your  little  finger  it  was 
as  large  as  the  end  of  your  thumb. 

Every  year  the  fruit  of  that  bush  would  be  larger 
and  finer  until  some  day  a  man  would  come  by  who 
was  tempted  to  try  the  juicy-looking  blackberry. 
How  much  better  that  berry  tasted  than  any  he 
had  ever  tried  before.  He  would  look  at  it  to  see  if 
it  was  really  a  blackberry  bush  that  he  had  found 
in  that  unaccustomed  place.  It  certainly  was, 
although  it  seemed  strange  to  see  it  growing  there. 

As  the  man  looked  a  thought  must  have  come 
into  his  head!  If  the  blackberries  could  grow  so 
large  and  sweet  and  juicy  in  that  richer  and  moister 
earth,  why  not  plant  some  in  that  sort  of  soil,  and 
tend  them  and  make  them  larger  still?  Now  black- 
berries grow  in  gardens,  and  the  berries  are  as  large 
as  mother's  thimble.  We  buy  them  in  the  markets 
and  have  them  on  our  tables.  Was  that  the  way 
men  first  started  to  make  a  garden,  do  you  think? 
However  they  began,  the  birds  had  helped  long 
before  by  scattering  the  seeds,  and  so  giving  plants 
a  chance  to  try  some  other  kind  of  soil. 

When  the  Pilgrims  came  to  Plymouth  they  found 
the  Indians  planting  corn,  and  none  of  them  knew 
where  and  when  it  had  first  been  planted.  So  it  is 
with  us.  We  do  not  know  when  men  first  began  to 
sow  in  fresh,  open  ground  the  seeds  that  they  had 
learned  were  good  to  eat. 


56         THE   WORLD   IN   WHICH   WE   LIVE 

When  people  learned  to  raise  and  care  for  fruits 
and  grains  they  themselves  began  to  change  from 
savages  into  more  civilized  beings.  For  when  they 
had  planted  grain  they  must  stay  and  tend  it  and 
wait  for  it  to  become  ripe  and  fit  to  eat.  So  they 
gradually  ceased  their  roving  life,  ceased  spending 
their  entire  time  hunting  game  and  began  to  live 
together  in  groups.  So  civilized  life  began  with 
gardens  and  grain  fields. 

Have  you  ever  seen  a  field  of  tall,  Indian  corn, 
with  the  tassels  nodding  above  the  thick  green 
mass?  Have  you  ever  seen  a  field  of  golden  wheat 
ready  to  be  harvested,  or  a  field  of  barley  or  oats? 
The  ripe  oats  might  make  you  think  of  long  stalks 
of  ripened  grass,  and  for  a  good  reason.  All  our 
grain,  such  as  corn,  wheat,  rye,  oats,  barley  and 
rice,  were  wild  grass  long,  long  ago  before  men 
planted  them  and  took  care  of  them. 

Does  it  seem  possible  that  ''just  grass"  could 
ever  have  been  cultivated  to  such  an  extent  that  its 
seeds  would  become  the  source  of  our  daily  bread? 
But  it  is  true.  For  a  longer  time  than  you  could 
count,  or  even  think,  men  have  been  cultivating  these 
cereals,  and  they  have  improved  them  so  much  that 
now  we  can  hardly  believe  that  they  were  once  a 
kind  of  wild  grass.  ''The  grass  of  the  field,"  Jesus 
called  these  grains. 

God's  care  of  the  world  and  of  us  is  bestowed  in 
such  a  wonderful  way  that  the  very  conomonest 
part  of  the  earth's  covering,  the  grass,  is  not  only  the 
food  for  cattle  and  horses  and  sheep,  but  it  is  also 
the  principal  source  of  our  own  food.    But  grass  had 


THE   EARTH   OUR   STOREHOUSE  57 

to  be  cultivated  for  a  long  time  before  it  became 
grain.  Without  that  cultivation  the  wild  corn, 
which  was  the  first  parent  of  our  sweet  corn,  could 
never  have  had  such  large  stalks  and  leaves,  or 
such  thick,  juicy  seeds,  or  so  many  of  them,  as  our 
corn  has.  And  just  think  of  the  difference  between  a 
little,  sour,  wild  apple  and  a  great,  delicious,  rosy 
Baldwin ! 

Does  it  seem  strange  to  you  that  men  have  also 
become  better  and  better  while  they  have  been  busy 
trying  to  make  the  plants  improve?  It  is  no  more 
strange  than  that  the  bees  have  made  better  honey 
and  become  more  intelligent  insects  while  they  were 
at  work  helping  the  flowers! 

It  is  in  this  wonderful  way  that  God's  law  works. 
Nothing  can  improve  without  helping  other  things 
to  improve,  and  no  one  can  try  to  help  others  without 
being  helped  himself. 


PART   II 

Animals  and  Insects 

LESSONS  8-17 


Ask  now  the  beasts,  and  they  shall  teach  thee; 

And  the  birds  of  the  heavens,  and  they  shall  tell  thee: 

Or  speak  to  the  earth,  and  it  shall  teach  thee; 

And  the  fishes  of  the  sea  shall  declare  unto  thee. 

Who  knoweth  not  in  all  these. 

That  the  hand  of  the  Lord  hath  wrought  this. 

Job  12:7-9 


LESSON  8 
THE  ANTS 

MEMORY  VERSE 

Go  to  the  ant,  thou  sluggard; 
Consider  her  ways,  and  be  wise. 

Prov.  6:  6 

The  Purpose 

No  child  ought  to  leave  the  Sunday  school  after  the 
lesson  on  ants  without  a  vivid  impression  of  what  indus- 
try and  helpfulness  can  accomplish  in  any  community, 
be  it  a  city,  a  home,  a  schoolroom,  or  an  ant  hill. 

Peaceful  industry  and  mutual  helpfulness  would  re- 
generate the  society  of  man. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

Try  to  make  the  ant  life  seem  as  vivid  as  possible. 
Dwell  upon  the  tender  care  given  the  baby  ants  by  their 
small  nurses.  All  children  love  babies  whether  they  be 
human  or  animal. 

Contrast  the  state  of  the  ants  that  fight  and  bring 
home  slaves  to  wait  upon  them  with  that  of  the  busy 
working  ants,  and  enlarge  upon  the  lesson  that  human 
beings  also  suffer  from  being  waited  upon  too  much. 

Especially  impress  upon  the  children  the  busy,  in- 
dustrious, peaceful  and  unselfish  life  which  these  ants 
live,  and  which  makes  their  great  communities  possible. 

Selfish  animals  become  outcasts.  There  is  no  room  for 
them  in  community  life. 

61 


62  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

OPENING    TALK 

1.  A  Review  of  Part  1. 

What  is  it  that  wakes  up  the  seed  lying  so  fast  asleep 
in  the  dark,  damp  earth?  What  makes  it  grow?  What 
causes  the  forest  trees  to  grow  so  straight  and  tall?  Why 
is  a  tree  growing  in  the  open  fields  or  upon  a  bare  hillside  so 
symmetrically  shaped,  and  why  is  it  clothed  with  so  many 
leaves? 

What  helps  has  God  given  the  plant  world  besides  the 
earth,  the  water,  the  sun  and  the  wind?  While  the  bees 
are  working  hard  to  help  themselves,  what  else  do  they 
help?     How  did  grass  get  to  be  grain? 

2.  Introducing  Part  2. 

There  are  other  things  besides  the  clouds,  the  ferns 
and  mosses,  seeds  and  flowers,  plants  and  trees,  which  we 
shall  find  interesting.  Much  more  like  us  than  the  plants 
and  trees  are  the  forms  of  animal  life.  People  have  ob- 
served the  insects  and  animals  so  carefully  that  they  can 
tell  us  many  things  about  them,  and  we  will  look  at  them 
with  more  interest  when  we  have  learned  how  they  build 
their  homes,  take  care  of  their  babies  and  learn  to  live 
together  in  communities. 

We  are  to  hear  to-day  the  story  of  the  ant,  a  humble 
little  creature  which  was  thought  worthy  to  be  men- 
tioned in  our  Bible. 


THE  ANTS 

How  many  of  you  have  ever  been  to  a  picnic  and 
seen  the  ants  carrying  off  the  crumbs  that  you  spilled 
or  threw  away?  Did  you  notice  how  hard  they 
worked  to  drag  away  a  crumb  of  bread  that  was  very 
much  larger  than  themselves  and  how  two  or  three 
would  often  push  or  pull  together?  All  of  you  have 
seen  ant-hills.  Have  you  noticed  the  small  hill  that 
the  little  red  ant  builds  along  the  paths  and  side- 
walks, and  the  large  hills  that  the  black  ants  build 
in  the  fields  and  woods?  Did  you  know  that  those 
hills  were  cities,  large  cities,  where  thousands  of 
ants  live  together  working  in  peace  and  harmony? 

Long,  long  years  ago  a  wise  man  studied  the  ways 
of  these  little  insects  and  made  a  proverb  about  them 
to  help  and  encourage  people  to  live  a  worthy,  in- 
dustrious life.     He  wrote: 

Go  to  the  ant,  thou  sluggard; 

Consider  her  ways,  and  be  wise: 

Which  having  no  chief, 

Overseer,  or  ruler, 

Provideth  her  bread  in  the  summer. 

And  gathereth  her  food  in  the  harvest. 

Those  who  have  more  recently  observed  ants  and 
studied  their  ways,  say  that  he  was  quite  right,  and 
that  the  ants  have  no  ruler  or  overseer,  —  and  yet 
in  the  cities  which  they  build  and  which  contain 

63 


64  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

many  thousands  of  individuals,  the  ants  never  quarrel, 
but  go  about  their  work  from  early  morning  until 
dark,  each  one  always  working  for  the  good  of  all. 

When  we  speak  of  nurses  and  road-builders  we 
think  always  of  human  beings,  men  and  women, 
do  we  not?  Who  would  think  that  animals  or  in- 
sects had  nursery  maids,  that  they  engaged  in  road 
building,  or  kept  cows?  Yet  all  these  things  the 
ants  do,  those  little  ants  which  we  so  thoughtlessly 
tread  under  foot,  and  they  do  it  most  carefully  and 
industriously. 

''But  how  can  they  build  roads,  if  they  have 
only  legs,  and  how  can  they  be  nursery  maids  if 
they  have  no  hands  with  which  to  wash  the  little 
baby  ants?"  you  might  ask.     We  shall  see. 

The  ants  have  six  legs,  but  they  also  have  a  pair 
of  mandibles  by  the  side  of  their  mouths,  which 
take  the  place  of  oui  hands,  and  with  which  they 
carry  things;  they  also  have  a  pair  of  long  antennse 
below  their  eyes,  which  they  use  to  clean  themselves 
and  their  friends  and  the  little  baby  ants,  and  with 
which,  by  touch,  they  know  their  friends  and  ac- 
quaintances. If  you  look  closely  at  an  ant  you  can 
see  these  mandibles  and  antennse. 

Now  in  every  ant  hill  there  are  four  different  sets 
of  ants:  the  mother  ants,  called  queens,  who  are 
very  important;  the  father  ants,  who  are  rather 
lazy  and  do  not  live  very  long  in  the  hill;  the  workers, 
divided  up  into  several  bands  that  do  all  the  work ;  and 
the  baby  ants,  who  have  to  be  very  carefully  tended. 

The  queens  are  greatly  honored  by  all  in  the  ant 
city.     The  others  never  turn  their  backs  to  them, 


THE   ANTS  65 

but  always  face  them  when  in  their  presence.  Great 
care  is  taken  of  them.  They  are  fed  and  cleaned 
by  the  workers  who  brush  them  with  their  antennae, 
carefully  and  tenderly. 

These  queens  lay  many  eggs.  When  the  tiny 
eggs  hatch,  the  baby  ants  do  not  come  out  of  the 
eggs  all  free  as  does  a  chicken.  Before  they  can  run 
about  they  have  to  lie  a  long  time  done  up  in  a  little 
case,  much  like  the  cocoon  of  a  moth,  and  while  they 
are  in  the  cocoon  they  need  much  tender  care. 
This  the  nm-ses  give,  carrying  the  little  cases  back 
and  forth  into  warm  and  sheltered  places,  arrang- 
ing them  all  in  rows  according  to  their  size,  like 
classes  of  children  in  a  school.  When  the  baby  ants 
begin  to  come  out  of  the  cases  the  nurses  break 
open  the  outer  covering  and  help  them  out.  For 
it  seems  to  be  impossible  for  the  baby  ant  to  help 
itself  as  a  little  chicken  does.  The  nurse  then  un- 
folds its  little  legs,  washes  it  with  her  antennae  and 
feeds  it  carefully  for  a  few  days. 

It  is  then  past  its  babyhood  and  has  become  a 
young  ant,  and  as  such  helps  to  care  for  the  other 
babies  done  up  in  their  little  cases.  It  scurries 
around  and  drags  the  babies,  cradles  and  all,  out 
into  the  sun,  or  away  from  a  draft,  or  a  prowling 
enemy,  or  hurries  back  with  it  if  the  sky  is  clouded 
over. 

The  next  time  you  go  into  the  woods  or  an  open 
field,  turn  over  a  flat  stone  and  see  if  you  can  find 
an  ants'  nest  under  it.  Then  watch  the  little  ant 
nurses  hurrying  away  out  of  sight,  carrying  with 
them  the  white,  cradled  babies. 


66  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

As  soon  as  the  young  nurses  get  old  enough,  that 
is,  when  their  skin  is  hardened  into  shiny  armor, 
they  must  go  outside  the  hill  for  provisions,  and 
must  help  build  new  roads  and  tunnels  and  chambers, 
and  keep  the  old  ones  in  repair.  They  are  as  busy 
as  busy  can  be  all  day  long,  and  never  stop  to  rest; 
only,  those  who  have  watched  ants  very  carefully 
say  that  sometimes  they  really  seem  to  play.  They 
run  about  and  jump  upon  each  other's  backs,  or 
stand  upon  their  hind  legs  to  wrestle,  stroking  each 
other  meanwhile  in  a  friendly  manner  with  their 
antennae. 

The  ants  which  go  outside  of  the  hill  or  city  to 
forage,  sometimes  go  long  distances,  but  they  always 
know  how  to  find  their  way  home  again,  and  they 
take  back  to  it  whatever  they  find,  —  a  dead  fly  or 
a  caterpillar,  a  crumb  or  a  piece  of  bread.  If  one 
ant  cannot  carry  the  load  alone  she  goes  and  gets 
her  friends  to  help  and  together  they  pull  and  push 
and  tug  the  morsel  to  their  home.  They  never  stop 
to  eat  by  themselves  any  of  the  food  that  has  been 
found;  every  particle  is  always  carried  back  to  the 
city  to  be  used  as  food  for  all. 

Besides  the  food  which  they  store  away,  they  are 
very  fond  of  the  honey-dew  which  they  obtain  by 
milking  very  tiny  green  flies  called  aphids.  These 
aphids  live  on  shrubs  and  bushes  and  on  trees,  and  the 
ants  go  a  long  way  to  find  them  and  to  milk  them. 

You  may  have  seen  these  tiny  green  flies  upon 
your  rose  bushes  or  grapevines,  and  noticed  ants 
crawling  up  and  down  the  stalks.  They  are  after 
the  honey-dew   of   which   they   are   so   fond.     By 


THE  ANTS  67 

stroking  the  backs  of  the  aphids  the  ants  make 
them  give  up  this  sweet  fluid,  taking  it  home  in 
their  mouths  to  feed  to  their  queens  and  to  those 
young  nurses  that  do  not  go  outside  the  hill. 

Some  kinds  of  ants  will  take  the  aphids  home  in 
their  mandibles  and  keep  them  in  their  cities  in  a 
sort  of  stable  where  they  feed  and  milk  them. 
Some  ants  will  carry  them  away  from  the  plants 
where  they  happen  to  be,  putting  them  on  other 
plants  that  they  seem  to  know  will  make  the  aphids 
fatter  and  so  make  them  give  more  honey-dew, 
just  as  we  think  our  cows  give  better  milk  if  they 
feed  in  a  pasture  of  fresh  green  grass. 

It  is  supposed  that  ants  keep  pets  in  their  cities, 
for  there  is  a  kind  of  beetle  which  is  found  in  the 
hills  of  many  ants  which  they  treat  with  great  care 
and  seeming  fondness,  stroking  it  with  their  an- 
tennae and  feeding  it.  Isn't  it  funny?  Just  as  we 
feed  and  stroke  our  cats! 

Some  ants  keep  slaves.  They  go  out  in  regular 
masses  like  an  army  and  march  in  order,  never 
scattering  or  hesitating,  on  their  way  to  the  nest  of 
a  certain  kind  of  black  ant  called  the  slave  ant. 
Here  they  engage  in  battle,  and  when  they  have 
conquered  they  rush  into  the  city  and  come  out 
carrying  the  babies  in  the  little  cases.  These  they 
take  back  to  their  own  city,  and  when  the  little 
black-ant  babies  come  out  of  their  cradles  they 
become  slaves  to  the  ants  that  stole  them. 

In  the  nests  of  these  slave-making  ants  there  are 
no  nurses  or  workers  of  their  own  kind.  The  slaves 
take  their  places  and  do  that  work.     The  slaves 


68  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

feed  and  clean  their  masters  until  these  masters 
become  so  helpless  that  they  cannot  feed  them- 
selves. They  will  even  lie  beside  a  mass  of  honey 
and  die  without  trying  to  eat  it.  People  become 
helpless  when  they  are  waited  upon  too  much  and  it 
is  not  strange  that  a  little  ant,  too,  suffers  from  the 
same  cause.  God  has  made  all  His  creatures  able  to 
help  themselves,  and  those  that  do  not  must  suffer. 

At  the  different  doorways  of  the  ant  hill  door- 
keepers are  always  stationed  whose  duty  seems  to 
be  to  keep  out  all  intruders.  They  are  never  absent 
from  their  posts,  and  they  feel  over  with  their  an- 
tennae every  creature  that  tries  to  come  in.  An  ant 
from  another  hill  they  will  immediately  attack, 
taking  it  bodily  out  of  the  doorway  and  thrusting 
it  away.  They  fight,  too,  with  the  ants  from  an- 
other hill  or  city,  but  they  have  never  been  known 
to  quarrel  with  those  of  their  own  company.  They 
even  know  and  will  recognize  each  other  after  they 
have  been  separated  many  months.  If  two  ants 
were  to  be  put  into  a  hill,  one  a  stranger  and  the 
other  one  of  their  own  community  that  had  been 
separated  from  them  for  many  months,  the  door- 
keepers would  stroke  both  ants  with  their  antennae; 
the  friend  would  be  received  with  signs  of  pleasure 
and  welcome,  while  the  stranger  would  be  caught 
up  and  hurried  out,  sometimes  even  killed. 

How  can  it  be  possible  that  all  these  thousands 
of  ants  in  one  ant  city  know  each  other?  They  not 
only  recognize  each  other,  but  they  seem  to  be  such 
friends  that  they  offer  to  give  help  and  assistance 
to  one  another. 


THE  ANTS  69 

We  have  heard  how  the  nurses  help  the  babies 
out  of  their  Httle,  tightly  wrapped  cradles,  how  they 
unfold  the  legs  and  smooth  out  the  tiny,  crum- 
pled wings  with  great  care  and  seeming  tenderness: 
how  they  also  feed  the  queen  and  comb  and  brush 
her  with  their  antennae.  If  a  queen  dies  the  workers 
are  inconsolable  and  crowd  around  her  trying  to 
raise  her  up  and  bring  her  to  life  again.  They  seem 
to  mourn  for  her  for  weeks.  When  they  come  across 
any  of  their  own  number  in  distress  they  are  most 
vahant  comrades,  doing  everything  they  can  to 
help  the  distressed  one,  even  to  slinging  her  over 
their  backs  and  taking  her  a  long  distance  back  to 
their  hill. 

Now  these  little  ants  which  seem  so  insignifi- 
cant to  some  people  are  God's  creatures.  He  has 
made  them  and  He  has  given  them  the  power  to  do 
things  which  we  had  supposed  we  alone  could  do. 
Some  things  they  do  even  better  than  we  can.  Think 
of  these  ant  cities,  with  all  the  thousands  of  their 
members  working  so  hard  to  make  their  own  city 
quite  perfect,  and  best  of  all,  with  no  quarreling 
or  idleness. 

The  wise  man  of  old  thought  that  idle  people 
might  well  consider  the  ways  of  the  ant  and  learn 
to  be  diligent.  The  wise  man  to-day  will  see  how 
wonderful  it  is  that  God's  laws  are  the  same  for  all 
hfe.  Ants  show  in  theu*  way  just  what  people  have 
learned,  that  industry  and  faithfulness  are  neces- 
sary in  the  life  we  live  together,  and  that  to  help 
one  another  is  the  right  law  for  ant  cities  as  it  is 
for  our  own. 


LESSON  9 
THE   SPIDER 

MEMORY  VERSE 

Let  us  not  be  weary  in  well-doing. 

Gal.  6:  9 

The  Purpose 

Continuance  in  well  doing  is  the  special  lesson  to  be 
drawn  from  this  story.  The  spider  works  patiently  and 
industriously,  and  so  fulfills  the  law  of  her  being.  She 
has  no  other  reward  for  her  perfect  work  than  a  little 
more  food. 

The  reward  which  boys  and  girls  have  for  patient  in- 
dustry is  manhood  and  womanhood  of  ennobled  char- 
acter, of  great  attainments,  and  sometimes  of  real 
genius. 

The  lessons  upon  the  lives  of  great  men  given  toward 
the  end  of  the  book  will  offer  applications  of  this  teaching. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

In  presenting  this  lesson  of  the  spider  and  her  web,  the 
interest  of  the  children  must  not  be  allowed  to  flag  over 
the  description  of  the  web-making.  Use  the  illustration 
while  making  the  description,  pointing  out  the  resting 
floor,  the  guy-ropes,  the  spokes,  and  the  points  of  inter- 
section between  the  sticky  threads  and  the  spokes. 

The  teacher  should  be  sure  she  understands  each  step 
in  the  process  of  making  the  web  before  she  attempts  to 

70 


THE   SPIDER  71 

describe  it.  The  description  from  which  this  is  abridged 
is  given  in  Fabre's  The  Life  of  the  Spider.^ 

Dwell  upon  the  spider's  patient  industry  in  doing  over 
the  same  thing  each  time  just  as  well  as  she  knows  how. 
Then  impress  upon  the  children  the  great  reward  that 
God  gives  us  for  continued  well-doing.  Tell  them  that 
later  they  will  learn  how  some  men  have  helped  the 
world  and  what  great  things  they  have  done  because  of 
their  industry  and  perseverance. 

Urge  each  child  to  make  the  free-hand  drawing  of  the 
orb  web  the  best  that  he  can  do.  It  may  be  done  at 
home  if  time  for  it  can  not  be  found  in  class. 

Hand  Work 

A  reproduction  of  the  orb  spider's  web  to  be  drawn  as 
well  as  possible  free-hand,  copying  the  illustration  on  the 
upper  half  of  the  drawing  page. 

OPENING   TALK 

There  was  a  proverb  about  the  ant  in  our  last  lesson 
which  we  are  to  remember.  Let  us  say  it  together. 
(Secure  concert  recitation  of  the  memory  verse  for 
Lesson  8.)  The  ants  show  us  how  insects  learn  to  live 
together  in  communities.  There  is  another  little  creature 
we  have  all  seen  whose  home  is  very  different  from  the 
ant's,  but  quite  as  wonderful.  When  we  have  had  the 
story,  you  may  tell  me  in  what  ways  they  are  alike  and 
in  what  ways  they  differ. 

1  The  Life  of  the  Spider.    Fabre.     Dodd,  Mead  &  Co. 


THE  SPIDER 

Sometimes  in  the  corners  of  our  rooms  and  in 
many  places  out  of  doors  —  in  the  grass,  on  the 
bushes,  about  the  fences,  and  behind  the  bUnds  — 
Uttle  creatures  hve  that  weave  houses  out  of  pure 
white  silk,  a  silk  so  fine  and  delicate  that  it  can 
easily  be  torn  by  the  touch  of  our  fingers. 

Who  are  these  little  silk  spinners?  Yes,  they  are 
spiders,  little  creatures  which  we  are  apt  to  step 
upon  and  kill  just  because  they  are  spiders.  We 
feel  as  if  we  were  untidy  and  careless  when  we  see 
cobwebs,  as  we  call  the  little  silken  house  of  the 
spider,  in  our  rooms,  or  about  our  houses.  But  ex- 
cept that  the  spider's  house  may  seem  untidy,  the 
spider  itself  does  us  no  harm.  She  does  not  trouble 
us,  she  only  catches  the  flies  and  mosquitoes  which 
come  into  our  rooms  and  which  we  do  not  want  there. 

Have  you  ever  seen  a  spider  sitting  within  the 
doorway  of  her  house,  watching  with  her  eight 
bright,  black  eyes  to  see  if  a  fly  will  alight  upon  her 
web?  Flies  do  so  alight,  and  when  they  do,  they 
seem  never  able  to  get  away  again.  What  does  the 
spider  do  to  keep  them  there?  And  why  can  she 
run  so  swiftly  over  the  same  silk  carpet  that  holds 
the  fly's  feet  so  fast?  If  you  will  look  very  carefully 
you  will  see  the  finest  of  silk  threads  running  back 
and  forth  above  the  carpet.     They  are  all  criss- 

72 


THE  SPIDER  73 

cross,  and  they  make  a  net-work  in  which  the 
blundering  fly  or  mosquito  or  miller  is  sure  to  be 
caught.  Then  out  the  spider  runs  and  binds  it  up 
in  strong  silken  ropes. 

You  have  to  be  careful,  when  you  walk  over  dead 
branches  in  the  woods,  not  to  trip,  do  you  not? 
Supposing  you  had  six  feet  instead  of  two,  how  soon 
do  you  suppose  you  could  disentangle  them? 

So  the  spider  weaves  with  great  skill  and  great 
care  her  smooth  white  carpet  to  run  upon,  but  up 
above  she  makes  tangled  threads  of  the  finest, 
strongest  silk  she  can  spin,  knowing  that  the  in- 
quisitive fly  will  blunder  right  among  them  and 
be  caught. 

Did  you  ever  see  a  spider  make  her  carpet?  No, 
because  she  works  at  night.  At  night,  when  we 
are  sleeping  she  is  working  hard,  spinning  the  silken 
thread  and  weaving  it  into  the  finest  and  softest  of 
carpets;  and  then  all  day  she  sits  and  watches  for 
her  food.  She  never  seems  to  sleep,  but  is  always 
watching  in  the  daytime  and  working  at  night.  We 
could  not  work  so  hard  as  that,  for  we  must  sleep 
at  night  and  rest  a  little  in  the  daytime.  But  the 
spider,  from  sunrise  to  sunset,  is  feeling  with  her 
feet  and  watching  with  her  eyes  to  see  if  there  is  the 
slightest  quiver  of  the  silk  to  tell  her  that  some  fly 
has  alighted  upon  her  web.  Did  you  ever  put  a 
little  piece  of  straw  or  a  tiny  leaf  upon  a  cobweb 
and  watch  the  spider  dart  out,  seize  the  straw,  drop 
it,  and  run  back  disgusted? 

The  house  spider  makes  a  three-sided  carpet  in 
the  corners  of  an  unused  room  or  of  a  cellar  or  barn. 


74  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

and  she  often  puts  bits  of  plaster  upon  it  so  it  will 
not  be  blown  up  and  down  by  the  currents  of  air. 
We  put  stones  upon  pieces  of  cloth  which  we  have 
put  out  to  bleach  upon  the  grass,  to  keep  them  from 
being  blown  away,  but  would  you  think  that  a  little 
spider  would  know  enough  to  put  pieces  of  mortar 
on  her  silken  carpet  to  keep  it  from  blowing  about? 

There  are  many  different  kinds  of  .spiders  and  all 
of  them  make  different  sorts  of  carpets.  You  know 
how  on  some  summer  morning  you  look  out  and 
see  the  grass  all  covered  with  dainty,  silken  tents. 
\Anien  the  dew  dries  away  we  no  longer  see  the 
tents,  for  the  silk  is  so  fine  that  they  are  almost  in- 
visible unless  wet  by  dew  or  fog.  A  hard  rain  ruins 
them  and  so  do  our  feet  as  we  walk  across  the  grass. 
But  the  next  night  all  those  little  spiders  are  at 
work  again  and  by  the  following  morning  the  grass 
is  covered  once  more  by  the  dainty,  silken  tents. 

One  spider,  which  children  call  the  golden  spider, 
spins  an  open-work  carpet  of  silken  ropes  and 
threads  in  the  shape  of  a  circle.  It  does  not  lie  flat 
but  hangs  perpendicularly  in  the  air.  This  is  some- 
thing like  little  crocheted  mats  or  doihes  and  not  at 
all  like  the  house-spider's  carpet.  Should  you  think 
a  mere  spider  could  spin  anything  so  exact  and  so 
wonderful  as  this  web?  How  do  you  suppose,  in 
the  dark  night,  she  can  make  all  the  spokes  of  her 
wheel  so  perfect  and  divide  the  spaces  so  evenly?  - 

Could  you  draw  a  picture  of  this  golden  spider's 
web?  Try  it  and  see  if  you  can  draw  as  evenly  as 
the  spider  can  spin.  And  remember  that  she  has 
to  hang  her  web  across  the  tips  of  branches  and 


THE   SPIDER  75 

must  divide  her  circle  into  just  so  many  equal  parts 
without  anything  to  guide  her  but  her  sense  of  space; 
while  you  have  your  hands  and  your  eyes,  and  a 
picture  of  the  web  to  look  at  and  to  copy. 

Has  not  God  given  the  little  spider  a  wonderful 
gift  that  she  is  able  to  spin  such  a  perfect  web? 
Would  you  like  to  know  how  she  goes  about  to 
make  it? 

About  nightfall,  the  spider  comes  to  the  end  of  a 
twig,  and,  after  sitting  there  awhile  as  if  to  see  that 
nothing  would  interfere  with  her  web,  she  sud- 
denly drops  down  with  her  eight  legs  wide  spread. 
By  the  light  of  a  lantern  you  could  just  see  the  fine 
silvery  rope  she  spins  as  she  drops.  When  she  has 
almost  reached  the  ground,  she  turns  and  cHmbs 
up  the  rope,  vspinning  and  twisting  as  she  climbs, 
to  make  it  thicker  and  stronger.  Then  she  sits 
once  more  upon  the  end  of  the  twig  and  waits  until 
the  wind  shall  blow  the  filmy  rope  aside  and  make 
it  catch  upon  some  other  twig.  Patiently  the 
spider  waits;  she  can  do  nothing  unless  the  wind 
helps  her.  Just  a  little  breeze,  —  and  the  end  is 
caught,  and  over  the  bridge  the  spider  hurries  to 
see  if  her  guy-rope  is  fastened  to  a  suitable  moor- 
ing. If  it  is,  she  runs  back  and  forth  upon  it  several 
times,  strengthening  it  each  time  with  new  silk 
which  she  spins  from  her  spinnerets.  When  she  is 
satisfied  that  the  guy-rope  is  strong  enough,  she 
attaches  other  ropes  to  twigs  or  branches,  and  so 
outlines  the  space  she  is  to  fill. 

But  now  she  must  make  her  spokes  or  radii  to  this 
wonderful  wheel  she  is  about  to  spin.    From  top  to 


70  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

bottom,  she  fastens  a  stout  thread  which  in  the  center 
has  a  thick,  white  point  made  of  a  Uttle,  silk  cushion. 
This  is  to  be  the  center  of  the  wheel,  and  from  the 
center  the  spider  starts  to  the  outside  ropes,  fastens 
her  rope  and  returns.  From  this  center  she  runs 
here  and  there,  sometimes  in  one  direction  and 
sometimes  in  another;  sometimes  placing  spokes  on 
one  side,  then  going  over  and  placing  an  equal 
number  opposite,  as  if  she  knew  that  her  wheel 
would  drag  apart  if  it  were  not  properly  balanced. 

While  one  is  watching  her  it  seems  as  if  she  were 
working  in  the  utmost  disorder,  but  when  she  has 
finished  her  wheel,  each  spoke  is  perfectly  placed, 
she  has  put  in  just  as  many  as  her  kind  always  puts 
in,  and  they  are  equi-distant. 

Now  she  begins  to  put  in  the  rope  that  coils 
around  the  spokes.  Placing  herself  in  the  center, 
on  the  silk  cushion,  which  has  grown  larger  and 
larger  while  the  spokes  were  being  laid,  she  slowly 
turns  around  and  around,  and,  with  a  very  fine 
thread,  she  winds  a  spiral  from  spoke  to  spoke, 
carrying  the  thread  on  her  back  feet  and  placing 
the  coils  on  the  spiral  very  near  together.  She 
works  this  way  until  she  has  a  ^'resting  floor"  about 
the  size  of  the  palm  of  your  hand,  then,  spinning 
thicker  threads,  she  places  them  farther  apart  for 
her  spiral  until  she  reaches  the  outside  ropes. 

Is  her  web  done?  Oh,  no!  The  larger  part  of  the 
spiral  must  be  done  all  over  again.  She  has  only 
put  in  the  coarse  threads  to  hold  the  spokes  in  place. 
This  time  she  begins  where  she  left  off  and  weaves 
toward  the  center  with  a  sticky  rope.     This  she 


THE  SPIDER  77 

fastens,  as  she  spins,  to  each  spoke  of  her  wheel, 
going  around  and  around  her  circle;  drawing  nearer 
and  nearer  to  the  center,  with  perfectly  even  spaces 
between  her  sticky  ropes;  and  taking  up  the  first 
made  spiral  as  she  lays  the  new  one  in  place.  While 
she  spins  and  fastens  her  ropes  with  her  hind  feet, 
with  her  fore  feet  she  picks  up  her  old  thread,  and 
rolling  it  up  places  it  upon  the  spokes,  while  her 
four  middle  feet  carry  her  about  on  the  web  and 
keep  her  from  falling  to  the  ground. 

Could  you  do  so  many  things  at  once?  And  did 
you  ever  think  before  that  a  common  spider  could 
be  so  skilful?  It  is  hard  for  you  to  do  different 
things  with  your  two  hands  at  once.  Suppose  you 
tried  to  do  different  things  with  four  pairs  of  feet 
and  your  mouth,  how  would  you  succeed?  Would 
your  brain  tell  your  hands  and  feet  and  mouth  just 
how  to  do  it  all  perfectly?  Yet  we  think  the  spider 
has  no  brains:  we  dislike  its  ugly,  fat  body,  which  is 
really  a  marvelous  little  silk  mill,  and  we  kill  this  little 
creature  to  whom  God  has  given  gifts  which  we 
ourselves  do  not  possess. 

Think  of  the  patience  of  the  spider!  Spinning 
night  after  night  her  web,  for  it  is  the  only  way  she 
can  get  her  food;  and  her  ropes  are  so  delicate  that 
the  web  seldom  lasts  over  one  day!  Yet  the  spider 
spins  and  weaves,  spins  and  weaves,  waiting  for  the 
breeze  to  place  her  thread  in  the  first  place,  and  then 
going  through  with  every  part  of  her  work  with  as 
much  care  and  precision  as  if  it  were  to  last  always. 

God  has  given  us  far  more  gifts  than  He  has  given 
to  the  spider.     I  wonder  if  we  use  our  gifts  as  well? 


LESSON   10 
THE  BEES 

MEMORY  VERSE 

The  judgments  of  the  Lord  ai'e  true  and  righteous  altogether. 
More  to  be  desired  are  they  than  gold,  yea,  than  much  fine  gold ; 
Sweeter  also  than  honey  and  the  droppings  of  the  honeycomb. 

Ps.  19:9-10 

The  Purpose 

Even  more  wonderful  than  the  story  of  the  ant  is  that 
of  the  bee.  Interesting  as  it  is,  it  will  fulfill  its  purpose 
in  this  course  only  when  it  has  awakened  an  increased 
wonder  and  reverence  for  our  world,  and  helped  chil- 
dren to  think  of  the  promptings  of  instinct  as  the  voice 
of  God. 

The  obedience  of  this  little  creature  to  the  law  of  its 
life  helps  awaken  a  desire  in  the  hearts  of  God's  children 
to  fulfill  through  willing  obedience  to  His  laws  His  divine 
purpose  for  our  lives. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

Any  account  of  the  bees  and  their  work  is  very  inter- 
esting to  children.  They  will  probably  know  more  or 
less  about  them  already  and  they  will  want  to  tell  what 
they  have  been  told  and  what  they  have  seen.  They 
should  be  encouraged  to  tell  what  they  themselves  have 
noticed,  in  this  lesson  as  in  all  the  lessons,  but  time 
enough  should  be  kept  to  give  them  the  story  of  the  bees' 
life  as  it  is  given  here. 

78 


THE  BEES  79 

Make  clear  the  fact  that  the  bees,  as  well  as  the  ants, 
have  no  overseer  or  ruler,  and  that  they  do  their  work,  so 
skilfully  divided  up  as  it  is,  in  obedience  to  the  law  which 
has  been  given  them  and  which  we  call  their  instinct. 

Try  to  make  the  children  understand  that  a  conscience 
that  is  listened  to  and  followed  habitually  is  a  sure  guide 
to  help  us  in  obeying  God's  law. 

OPENING   TALK 

Let  me  see  the  drawing  of  the  spider's  web  which 
you  have  made.  What  can  you  tell  me  about  the  skill 
of  the  spider?  About  her  perseverance?  What  shows 
her  patience?  Repeat  the  memory  verse  for  last  week. 
What  reward  do  we  receive  for  not  being  weary  in  well- 
doing? 

Did  you  know  before  that  the  little  creatures  about 
us,  hke  the  ant  and  the  spider,  could  do  such  wonderful 
things?  There  is  another  insect  you  all  know  which 
lives  a  remarkable  life  in  communities,  which  makes 
something  we  like  to  eat.  It  is  —  yes,  the  bee.  Mr. 
Maeterlinck,  a  famous  author  in  Belgium,  that  wonder- 
ful little  country  you  have  heard  so  much  about,  kept  a 
colony  of  bees  in  a  glass  hive  so  that  he  could  watch  them 
at  work  by  just  lifting  the  dark  cloth  thrown  over  the 
glass.     Wouldn't  you  like  to  do  that? 


THE  BEES 

Who  has  watched  a  honeybee  getting  honey  and 
pollen  out  of  the  flowers?"  The  bee  thrusts  a  long 
tongue  down  into  the  flower  cup  and  brings  it  back 
all  covered  with  yellow  pollen.  And  have  you  ever 
seen  the  little  pockets  or  baskets  which  she  has  on 
her  two  hind  legs  and  into  which  she  puts  the  yellow 
poUen  as  she  gets  it?  Isn't  it  funny  to  think  of  a 
bee  with  little  baskets  fastened  to  her  legs? 

The  next  time  you  see  a  honeybee  or  a  bumble- 
bee, watch  ever  so  closely  and  perhaps  you  can  see 
her  put  that  pollen  into  those  little  baskets  on  her 
legs.  Quickly  she  brushes  the  pollen  off  her  tongue 
with  the  combs  of  hairs  on  her  fore  legs,  then  she 
brushes  it  off  her  fore  legs  with  her  middle  legs,  and 
then  with  the  feet  of  her  middle  legs  she  pats  it  down 
hard  into  the  little  baskets. 

You  will  have  to  watch  sharply^  for  the  bee  is  very 
quick  and  nimble.  She  cannot  spend  her  precious 
time  just  packing  away  the  pollen,  she  must  gather 
all  she  possibly  can  while  the  sun  is  out  and  the 
flower  cups  are  open.  When  well  laden  she  flies 
for  home  where  she  unloads  the  pollen  in  great  haste, 
kicking  it  out  of  each  basket  with  the  other  hind 
foot,  then  off  she  goes  again  to  gather  more. 

Sometimes  it  takes  a  great  while  for  her  to  get  a 
load,  perhaps  a  whole  morning;  and  yet  she  never 

80 


THE   BEES  81 

seems  tempted  to  go  to  any  other  kind  of  flower 
than  the  one  from  which  she  first  commenced  to 
gather  the  pollen.  That  is  the  law  of  the  hive  which 
the  bees  always  obey.  Sometimes  they  visit  twenty 
flowers  in  a  minute,  so  hard  do  they  keep  at  work, 
and  such  small  bits  of  honey  or  of  pollen  do  they 
find  in  each  flower.  Yet  no  bee  would  leave  that 
particular  kind  of  flower  upon  which  it  commenced 
to  work  that  day  for  any  other  flower,  however  full 
of  pollen  or  of  honey  it  might  be,  so  faithful  are  they 
and  such  hard  workers. 

Why  do  they  work  so  hard?  Is  there  any  other 
bee  which  forces  them  to  do  it?  No,  the  bees  are 
like  the  ants.  The  little  workers  seem  born  with  a 
determination  to  make  their  colony  the  best  and 
happiest  and  most  prosperous  community  of  bees 
that  can  be,  and  they  work  every  minute  to  make 
it  so. 

Suppose  we  follow  home  these  little  workers 
which  have  been  busily  collecting  the  pollen  and 
sipping  the  honey,  and  peep  into  the  hive  when  they 
come  in.  At  first  everything  seems  in  the  utmost 
confusion.  There  is  such  running  about,  such  flying 
around,  as  if  every  one  was  in  a  great  hurry.  What 
can  bees  accomplish,  you  think,  that  run  about  in 
such  confused  masses?  But  wait  a  few  moments  and 
you  will  see  that  a  wonderful  order  comes  out  of 
this  apparent  confusion. 

Inside  the  hive  is  a  real  city  built  up  with  wax 
cells.  These  are  used  as  rooms  for  the  babies  and 
for  storerooms  for  the  pollen  and  honey.  The  bees 
are  always  increasing  these  ceHs,  just  as  in  our  own 


82  ANIMALS   AND   INSECTS 

cities  we  are  always  putting  up  new  houses.  Now 
how  do  you  suppose  the  bees  get  the  wax  with  which 
they  build  up  this  city  of  theirs? 

Why,  they  make  it  themselves  and  in  a  most 
marvelous  way!  Certain  of  the  bees  seem  to  know 
that  it  is  their  business  to  furnish  wax.  They  begin 
their  work  by  a  feast  of  honey  and  then  hang  them- 
selves up  for  a  day  and  a  night  in  a  close,  heavy 
bunch  at  the  top  of  the  hive.  They  must  have 
eaten  just  so  much  honey,  and  they  must  be  just  so 
warm  before  the  wax  can  be  made.  Patiently  they 
wait  for  the  scales  of  beautiful,  white  wax  to  grow. 
It  seems  almost  like  magic,  but  after  about  twenty- 
four  hours  tiny  scales  of  shining  white  wax  begin 
to  slip  out  of  the  four  little  wax  pockets  on  the  under- 
side of  the  bees'  bodies.  Then  suddenly  one  of  the 
bees  will  seem  to  wake  up  and  she  will  leave  the 
rest  and  hurry  up  to  the  roof  of  the  hive.  There 
she  will  very  carefully  fasten  her  bits  of  wax  after 
she  has  chewed  them  and  moulded  them  and  snipped 
them  to  suit  her  fancy.  Others  will  follow  her,  and 
they  will  begin  to  build  the  waxen  comb. 

If  only  you  could  see  the  bees  building  their 
wonderful  cells!  One  bee  goes  and  gets  the  wax 
and,  placing  it  where  the  cell  is  to  be,  runs  away  for 
more.  Another  trims  it  with  the  nippers  on  her  legs, 
twists  it  into  place,  and  goes  off  for  another  piece. 
Bee  number  three  hurries  up,  gives  it  another  poke 
and,  twist  and  hurries  off  while  bee  number  four 
tries  her  skill. 

How  do  they  know  how  to  build  those  tiny  flakes 
of  wax  into  the  beautiful  and  regular  cells?     How 


THE   BEES  83 

do  the  spiders  know  how  to  divide  up  their  wheel 
into  just  so  many  spokes?  We  cannot  tell,  we  cannot 
even  guess,  for  these  are  secrets  between  these  little 
creatures  and  God,  who  gave  them  their  gifts. 

Now  the  (jueen  bee  wishes  to  lay  some  eggs  in 
those  beautiful  waxen  houses,  and  you  cannot  think 
how  those  Httle  workers  hurry  about  and  scramble 
over  one  another  to  build  them  fast  enough  to  suit 
her.    And  when  she  comes  to  see  how  they  are  pro- 
gressing, how  do  you  suppose  she  comes,  this  queen 
bee,  who  is  the  mother  of  the  hive?    Walking  over 
the  others  as  the  workers  do?    Oh,  no!    She  comes 
with  a  steady,  stately  step,  surrounded  by  a  circle 
of  attendants  whose  duty  it  is   to  watch  her,  fan 
her  with  their  wings,  stroke  her  with  their  antennae, 
feed  her  carefully  and  always  face  her.     When  she 
comes,  all  the  other  bees,  no  matter  how  hard  they 
are  at  work,  draw  back  and  leave  an  open  path  for 
this  queen  and  her  circle  of  attendants.    Isn't  that 
just  like  a  story  of  a  real  queen  out  of  your  story 
books? 

Just  as  your  mother  looks  to  see  that  the  crib  is 
all  comfortable  and  nice  before  she  lays  baby  brother 
or  sister  down  in  it,  so  this  queen  bee  pokes  her  little 
head  into  each  waxen  cell  to  see  that  it  is  right  before 
she  lays  her  egg  in  it.  Of  course  we  would  expect 
our  mothers  to  be  careful  about  their  dear  babies, 
but  who  would  have  thought  that  just  an  ordinary 
little  mother  bee  would  be  so  careful  of  the  place 
where  her  baby  was  to  live? 

So  the  queen  bee  goes  about  from  one  cell  to  an- 
other and  lays  so  many  eggs  that  the  little  builders 


84  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

have  to  work  fast  to  keep  up  with  her.  They  must 
make  wax  and  they  must  make  the  httle  cells  out  of 
the  wax.  They  must  gather  the  honey  and  the 
pollen  and  store  it  away.  Then  they  must  make  real 
honey  out  of  what  is  brought  in  from  the  flowers,  by 
standing  and  fanning  it  with  their  wings.  And  they 
must  mix  the  pollen  with  a  little  honey  to  make 
bee-bread  of  it.  The  workers  can  have  only  bee- 
bread  to  eat,  but  the  queen  must  always  have  a 
special  kind  of  honey. 

The  little  babies  when  they  hatch  from  the  eggs 
must  be  taken  care  of  and  fed,  and  when  they  are 
ready  to  come  out  of  their  rooms  they  must  be 
helped  out.  Then  they  must  be  carefully  tended 
just  as  the  ant  babies  are  tended  by  their  little 
nurses.  The  bee  nurses  are  just  as  careful  as  the 
ant  nurses.  They  help  the  baby  out,  they  smooth 
the  tin}^  crumpled  wings,  and  they  straighten  out 
the  six  little  folded  legs.  They  wash  the  baby  by 
licking  it  with  their  tongues  just  as  a  mother  cat 
washes  her  kittens;  they  comb  the  baby's  hairy  body 
with  the  combs  they  carry  on  their  legs,  and  they 
feed  it  with  drops  of  honey.  After  all  this  nursing 
the  baby  is  considered  a  baby  no  longer;  and  just 
as  the  ant  baby  turns  into  a  nurse,  so  the  bee  baby, 
after  she  has  been  washed  and  combed  and  fed, 
begins  to  help  the  nurses  with  the  other  babies. 
After  she  has  nursed  awhile  she  is  allowed  to  go  out 
and  get  honey. 

But  the  work  of  the  bee  city  is  not  half  told  yet. 
As  soon  as  the  babies  have  left  their  rooms,  bees 
come  hurrying  up  to  clean  out  the  little  cell  so  the 


THE  BEES  85 

queen  bee  can  lay  another  egg  in  it,  and  all  the  little 
bits  of  wax  and  the  unused  food  in  the  cell  are  taken 
up  and  carried  out  of  the  hive  and  dropped  over  the 
edge  of  the  doorstep. 

All  the  time  the  city  is  being  cleaned  up  in  just 
that  way.  No  stray  particles  of  anything  are  al- 
lowed to  cumber  up  the  city  or  make  it  untidy. 
Then,  too,  there  must  be  fresh  air.  The  bees,  like 
the  ants,  love  the  dark,  so  they  provide  only  one 
very  small  door.  This  does  not  let  in  air  enough, 
so  the  bees  ventilate  the  hive  by  having  groups  of 
workers  stand  near  the  door  to  fan  in  the  fresh  air 
with  their  wings.  We  always  supposed  the  bee  used 
her  wings  just  to  fly  with.  Who  ever  thought  she 
used  them  as  fans,  —  fans  to  evaporate  the  water 
from  the  honey,  fans  to  keep  the  queen  comfortable, 
fans  to  ventilate  the  whole  hive,  and  fans  to  keep 
the  babies  warm  in  their  cells  so  they  will  grow  up 
faster. 

With  all  this  work  to  be  done,  do  you  wonder  that 
the  bees  are  busy?  Does  it  not  seem  as  if  they 
planned  out  their  work?  As  if  they  said  to  each 
other,  ''Here,  you  do  that  and  we  will  do  this  and 
then  we  will  change  about."  Some  arrangement 
must  be  made  among  them  or  everything  would 
not  be  done  so  carefully.  No  one  ever  knew  of  a 
worker  bee  getting  interested  in  her  play  and  for- 
getting to  gather  the  honey,  or  sitting  lazily  about 
and  letting  some  other  bee  do  her  share.  The 
workers  never  do  that,  but  the  drones  do.  They 
are  very  lazy  just  as  they  were  in  the  ant  city,  and 
do  you  know,  the  workers  stand  it  just  as  long  as 


8G  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

they  can  and  then  they  turn  the  drones  out  of  the 
hives.  The  drones  do  not  seem  to  know  how  to 
gather  honey  and  so  they  die.    Poor,  lazy  drones! 

What  tells  the  bees  to  do  these  things  and  to  do 
them  so  well?  Do  you  suppose  there  is  a  little  voice 
inside  of  them  like  the  little  voice  inside  of  us  that 
tells  us  when  we  are  doing  right  or  wrong?  If  we 
listened  to  the  voice  more  often  and  more  closely 
would  it  not  talk  to  us  more? 

We  call  our  little  voice  our  conscience  and  we  call 
the  little  voice  that  tells  animals  w^hat  to  do  instinct. 
We  say,  ''They  do  this  by  instinct,"  meaning  that 
there  is  a  little  voice  within  them  which  tells  them 
what  to  do.  That  is  God's  voice,  telling  the  little 
insect  how  to  use  the  gift  He  has  given  to  it. 

Suppose  the  little  insect  did  not  listen  to  the 
voice  or  did  not  obey  it?  Oh,  but  the  little  insect 
does  listen  and  does  obey  just  as  well  as  it  can. 
That  is  why  the  beautiful  waxen  cells  are  all  so 
regular;  that  is  why  honey  is  stored  for  the  winter; 
that  is  why  the  bees  work  so  hard  instead  of  play- 
ing; and  that  is  why  their  city  is  so  well  governed 
without  any  ruler. 

If  we  all  listened  very  hard  to  the  ''still,  small 
voice"  within  us,  do  you  think  we  might  govern 
our  cities  better,  and  our  homes  and  our  country? 

Why,  4f  everyone  listened  to  the  "still,  small 
voice"  there  would  be  no  wicked  people,  —  all 
would  be  working  busily  to  make  their  home  and 
their  city  and  their  country  the  best  home  and  the 
best  city  and  the  best  country  in  God's  wonderful 
world. 


LESSON   11 
MOTHS  AND   BUTTERFLIES 

MEMORY  VERSE 

Eye  hath  not  seen,  nor  ear  heard,  neither  have  entered  into  the 
heart  of  man,  the  things  which  God  hath  prepared  for  them  that 
love  him.  1  Cor.  2:9 

The  Purpose 

The  metamorphosis  of  the  caterpillar  into  a  butterfly 
has  been  used  again  and  again  as  a  lesson  on  immortality. 
A  child  instinctively  trusts  the  future.  It  is  not  until 
later  that  doubts  arise.  But  a  lesson  learned  in  child- 
hood, though  not  needed  then,  will  come  back  in  the  time 
of  need  and  help  to  keep  faith  triumphant. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

In  presenting  this  lesson  to  the  children  it  should  be 
made  quite  plain  that  only  a  few  species  of  the  cater- 
pillar do  harm  to  our  trees  and  gardens,  and  that  those  are 
the  ones  that  the  birds  do  not  eat  on  account  of  their  thick, 
hairy  covering.  The  other  species,  excepting  the  smaller 
varieties,  that  is,  the  cankerworm  and  inchworm,  are  not 
numerous  enough  to  do  any  real  damage  to  our  vegetation. 

The  difference  between  moths  and  butterflies  should 
be  emphasized.  Some  of  the  class  may  have  seen  a  moth 
or  a  butterfly  emerge  from  its  cocoon  or  crysalis  and 
expand  its  wings  before  it  flew  away.  Let  one  who  has 
seen  it  tell  the  others  about  it. 

87 


88  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

The  caterpillar  obeys  its  instin(;t  and  does  what  it  is 
impelled  to  do  with  no  understanding  of  its  own  act, 
either  before  or  after  the  change. 

But  we  should  feel  the  most  implicit  faith  and  trust 
in  our  Maker  from  seeing  the  marvelous  second  life  He 
has  prepared  for  some  of  His  lowliest  creatures. 

OPENING   TALK 

How  many  insects  have  we  studied  about  thus  far? 
Where  do  ants  make  their  homes?  Spiders?  Bees? 
What  law  does  each  follow? 

There  is  one  story  almost  more  wonderful  than  any 
thing  else  in  our  world.  Perhaps  some  of  you  know 
about  it  already,  —  the  change  that  comes  to  a  cater- 
pillar through  its  enchanted  sleep.  I  wonder  if  it  will 
help  us  to  think  of  the  surprise  God  may  have  in  store 
for  us,  some  day? 


MOTHS   AND   BUTTERFLIES 

Do  you  remember  seeing  last  fall  a  thick,  brown, 
woolly  caterpillar  that  was  hurrying  away  as  fast 
as  it  could  go?  Did  you  wonder  where  it  was  going 
and  why  it  was  in  such  a  hurry?  It  traveled  over  the 
ground  so  fast  that  it  seemed  to  have  a  set  purpose 
of  its  own,  as,  indeed,  it  had;  for  it  was  hurrying 
away  to  find  a  cozy  spot  in  which  to  spend  the  long, 
cold  winter. 

The  sharp,  frosty  autumn  air  tells  the  woolly-bear 
caterpillar  that  winter  is  coming  and  it  hurries  about, 
through  the  grass  and  across  the  sidewalks,  any- 
where, everjrwhere,  to  find  a  crack  or  corner  for  its 
winter  home.  When  the  little  nook  is  finally  found  it 
curls  up  into  a  tight  ball  and  sleeps  away  the  long 
winter  just  as  the  real  bear  does  for  which  it  is  named. 

In  the  spring  when  the  sun  melts  the  snow  and 
the  days  begin  to  be  warmer,  out  it  comes  from  its 
tiny,  cozy  corner  just  the  way  the  big,  brown  bear 
comes  from  his  cave  where  he  has  been  curled  up 
asleep  so  long.  They  both  hunt  about  to  find  what 
they  can  to  eat,  for  they  are  very  hungry  after  their 
long  sleep. 

The  real  bear  wanders  about  through  the  woods. 
He  eats  what  dried  berries  and  leaves  he  can  find, 
but  no  matter  how  much  he  eats  he  always  remains 
a  bear.     But  the  little  woolly-bear  caterpillar  does 

so 


90  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

not  always  remain  a  caterpillar.  When  it  has  had 
plenty  to  eat  and  is  quite  fat,  it  goes  away  by  itself 
once  more  and  curls  up  into  a  tight  ball,  and  then 
instead  of  going  right  to  sleep  it  first  weaves  for 
itself  a  cradle  or  cocoon  out  of  silk,  weaving  in  the 
long  brown  hairs  that  cover  its  body  with  such  a 
thick  coat. 

In  that  little  cradle  it  sleeps  very  soundly.  So 
deep  and  sound  is  its  sleep  that  one  would  think  it 
dead.  But  the  caterpillar  is  not  dead.  It  is  only 
changing  its  form  within  that  closely  woven  bed. 
It  was  a  caterpillar  when  it  stripped  ofT  its  little  fur 
coat  and  rolled  up  in  it;  when  it  bites  a  hole  in  the 
fur  coat  wrapping  and  comes  out,  it  is  a  moth,  a 
pretty,  white  and  yellow  moth  with  black  spots  upon 
its  wings  and  body. 

It  is  just  as  if  a  fairy  had  touched  the  crawling 
caterpillar  with  her  wand  and  while  it  slept  an  en- 
chanted sleep  had  changed  it  into  that  pretty,  winged 
creature.  But  the  wand  that  touches  the  cater- 
pillar in  its  deep  sleep,  and  bids  it  live  again  as  a 
butterfly,  is  the  law  of  God  for  its  being.  Is  it  not  a 
marvelous  thing? 

Just  think  of  a  caterpillar,  a  common-looking 
creature  with  its  shapeless  body  and  its  many  short 
legs,  being  changed  into  a  butterfly.  Think  how  dif- 
ferent the  butterfly  is  with  its  graceful  body,  its  six 
long,  slender  legs  and  its  beautiful  wings  glistening 
with  gorgeous  colors. 

By  day  the  butterflies  sip  the  nectar  from  the 
flowers,  flying  hither  and  thither  in  the  sunlit  air. 
At  night  they  go  to  sleep.    The  moths,  on  the  other 


MOTHS  AND   BUTTERFLIES  91 

hand,  always  sleep  away  the  sunny  hours,  then 
wake  up  and  fly  about  at  night.  Although  they 
choose  to  fly  m  the  dark,  they  seem  to  be  so  en- 
chanted with  our  lamphghts  that  they  cannot  keep 
away  from  them  and  are  often  burned  in  the  flame. 
Poor,  foolish  little  moths! 

Often  in  the  daytime  you  can  see  these  moths 
resting  in  the  shadow  under  leaves  or  on  tree  trunks 
with  their  wings  widespread.  And  often  when  you 
walk  in  the  deep  grass  or  among  low  bushes  the 
moths  will  fly  up  and  then  go  back  to  rest  again. 

You  can  always  tell  a  moth  from  a  butterfly  in 
these  two  ways.  The  butterfly  loves  the  sun  and 
the  flowers  that  open  in  the  daytime  and  so  it  flies 
about  by  day.  When  it  alights  upon  a  flower  or 
leaf,  or  upon  the  roadside,  it  closes  its  wings  together 
over  its  back.  But  the  moth  sleeps  by  day  and  flies 
by  night,  and  whenever  it  comes  to  rest  it  spreads 
its  wings  wide  open. 

Butterflies  and  moths  do  not  harm  plants;  but  the 
caterpillars  from  which  they  develop  eat  the  leaves 
of  trees  and  plants.  Some  of  them,  the  hairy  ones, 
do  much  harm,  for  there  are  so  many  of  them  that 
they  eat  all  the  leaves,  and  that  kills  the  tree.  Few 
birds  like  hairy  caterpillars  and  most  birds  will  not 
eat  them.  But  the  smooth  caterpillars  the  birds 
do  eat,  and  because  of  that  there  are  seldom  enough 
to  do  our  trees  any  great  harm.  It  is  the  smooth 
caterpillars  that  change  to  butterflies. 

Did  you  ever  see  or  hear  a  caterpillar  eating  its 
dinner? 

It  is  a  very  greedy  little  glutton,  for  it  eats  all  the 


92  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

time  until  it  makes  its  cradle  and  goes  into  that 
deep  sleep  which  ends  in  its  change  into  a  beautiful, 
winged  creature. 

The  mother  of  a  caterpillar  is  a  butterfly  or  a 
moth.  She  lays  her  pretty  eggs  upon  a  leaf  of  the 
kind  of  plant  which  she  knows  is  good  for  the  cater- 
pillar to  eat,  and  then  off  she  goes  and  leaves  them 
for  the  sun  to  hatch.  Butterflies  and  moths  are  not 
so  careful  of  their  babies  as  the  ants  and  bees  or  as 
the  birds.  But  when  the  sun  has  hatched  the  baby 
caterpillars  they  find  themselves  sitting  upon  their 
own  dinner  table,  and  they  do  not  have  to  hunt  for 
food,  it  is  right  there  spread  out  before  them.  They 
do  not  waste  much  time  in  getting  to  work,  either, 
and  they  very  quickly  have  eaten  so  much  that 
they  have  to  change  their  skins.  That  is  the  way 
insects  grow.  As  soon  as  one  of  these  baby  cater- 
pillars has  eaten  as  much  as  it  can  hold,  it  crawls 
away  from  the  edge  of  the  leaf  and  makes  a  tiny 
silk  cushion  or  button  which  attaches  the  end  of  its 
body  firmly  to  the  leaf.  Then  the  skin  upon  its  head 
cracks  and  splits  open  and  the  baby  caterpillar  pulls 
itself  out  of  the  old  skin. 

It  is  a  very  pretty  sight  to  watch  it.  First  it 
wriggles  its  neck  free,  then  pulls  out,  in  succession, 
each  pair  of  feet,  pushing  the  old  skin  down  with 
each  foot  as  it  is  pulled  out.  Finally  it  pushes  the 
old  skin  away  with  the  last  pair  of  feet,  and  is  free. 
It  is  done  just  the  way  you  might  take  off  one  of 
your  garments,  pulling  out  your  arms,  then  pushing 
it  down  and  stepping  on  it  to  pull  out  your  feet. 
Think  of   a  baby  caterpillar    taking   off   his    skin 


MOTHS  AND   BUTTERFLIES  93 

just  as  children  take  off  their  clothes.  Is  it  not 
curious? 

When  the  skin  is  all  off  and  the  caterpillar  is  free, 
it  is  almost  twice  as  large  as  it  was  and  it  is  generally 
a  little  different  in  color  and  with  different  spots, 
just  as  if  it  had  a  new  dress.  It  changes  its  skin 
very  often,  every  time  it  has  eaten  enough  to  make 
it  grow  a  good  deal  larger. 

While  they  are  wee  babies,  these  caterpillars  all 
eat  along  the  edge  of  the  leaf  they  were  hatched 
upon,  but  as  they  become  larger  they  go  to  different 
leaves,  and  when  they  are  quite  large  they  eat  a  leaf 
up  with  great  rapidity.  They  make  such  a  noise 
as  they  eat  that  you  can  easily  hear  them  biting  off 
mouthfuls  of  the  leaves  if  you  happen  to  be  sitting 
under  a  tree  which  is  their  dining  room. 

You  would  laugh  if  you  could  see  a  large,  full- 
grown  caterpillar  begin  on  a  fresh  leaf.  It  seems  to 
be  the  hungriest  sort  of  a  creature  and  walks  around 
the  edge  of  the  leaf,  eating  as  it  goes.  Its  mouth 
opens  sideways  and  not  up  and  down,  as  our  mouths 
open.  So,  as  it  walks  around  the  leaf's  edge,  hugging 
the  leaf  as  it  goes,  with  a  foot  on  either  side,  the 
mouth  of  the  caterpillar  gobbles  up  the  leaf  like  a 
machine.  It  does  not  even  have  to  stop  to  breathe, 
because  it  breathes  through  spiracles  or  little  holes 
all  along  its  sides. 

Now  after  this  caterpillar,  or  little  eating  machine, 
has  changed  its  skin  several  times,  it  is  about  ready 
to  roll  itself  up  into  its  pupa  case,  or  make  a  cocoon. 
So  it  eats  just  as  much  as  it  possibly  can  hold  and 
then  hurries  away  to  find  a  place  suitable  for  the 


94  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

enchanted  sleep  which  will  end  in  the  glorious,  new 
life  of  a  butterfly  or  moth. 

If  it  is  the  kind  of  a  caterpillar  that  is  going  to 
change  into  a  butterfly,  it  fastens  the  end  of  its 
body  to  a  twig  or  the  side  of  a  house  by  the  same 
kind  of  a  silken  cushion  it  made  when  changing  its 
skin.  Then  it  weaves  a  fine  silken  rope  around  its 
neck  and  attaches  the  ends  to  the  same  support,  so 
it  hangs  like  a  tiny  hammock.  Then  for  the  last 
time  the  skin  is  changed,  and  the  old  skin  drops 
away  leaving  our  caterpillar  a  very  different  looking 
thing  from  what  it  was  before.  It  is  so  different  in 
shape  and  color  that  no  one  could  guess,  unless  he 
knew,  just  what  it  was. 

Within  this  odd-shaped  chrysalis  the  wonderful 
change  is  going  on  of  which  I  have  told  you.  The 
caterpillar  is  transformed,  and  out  of  the  broken 
shell  of  the  chrysalis  crawls  a  limp,  wet  creatm-e, 
looking  like  a  drowned  butterfly.  It  hangs  by  its 
feet  to  the  chrysalis,  pumping  from  its  swollen  body 
into  the  dainty,  crumpled  wings  the  liquid  which 
will  unfold  and  strengthen  them.  Gradually  the 
body  shrinks  in  size  and  becomes  drier  and  the 
wings  unfold  and  spread  open,  —  then  away  it  flies 
in  all  its  beauty. 

The  caterpiUar  which  is  to  become  a  moth  makes 
a  different  cradle  for  its  wonder  sleep.  It  does  as 
the  woolly-bear  caterpillar  does.  First,  it  weaves 
a  silken  cocoon  around  its  body,  then  it  sheds  its 
skin  for  the  last  time  and  changes  into  a  chrysalis 
within  the  cocoon.  It  is  very  interesting  to  see  the 
caterpillar  weave  the  outside  threads  of  its  cocoon. 


MOTHS  AND   BUTTERFLIES  95 

It  moves  its  head  slowly  from  side  to  side,  crossing 
and  attaching  the  threads  until  it  is  hidden  from 
sight,  and  in  secret  it  finishes  the  work.  When  the 
change  that  goes  on  in  the  cocoon  is  completed,  the 
moth  pushes  its  way  out  of  one  end  of  the  cocoon 
and  hangs  like  a  crumpled  mass,  as  did  the  butterfly, 
until  the  wings  are  smooth  and  dry.  Then  away  it 
goes  to  hide  until  nightfall. 

How  marvelous  is  this  change!  No  sleeping 
princess  in  a  fairy  tale  could  have  a  more  wonderful 
awakening,  nor  could  a  fairy's  robe  be  more  enchant- 
ing than  the  soft,  velvety  wings  of  the  butterflies 
with  their  exquisite  colors. 

Does  the  caterpillar  know  that  it  is  to  become 
such  a  beautiful  creature?  Is  that  why  it  hurries 
so  and  eats  all  it  can  night  and  day,  to  be  ready 
more  quickly  for  its  wonderful  future? 

The  caterpillar  does  not  know  why  that  sleepy 
feeling  comes  on.  It  does  not  know  that  it  wiU 
wake  up  and  find  itself  one  of  the  most  beautiful  of 
all  creatures.  It  does  not  know  that  the  end  of  its 
crawling  about  has  come  and  that  after  the  long 
sleep  it  can  fly  through  the  soft,  transparent  air  and 
sip  the  nectar  from  the  sweet  flowers  instead  of 
having  to  chew  the  tough  leaves.  It  only  obeys 
that  ''still,  small  voice"  that  speaks  to  everything 
in  this  world  and  tells  it  what  to  do. 

Suppose  the  caterpillar  tired  of  changing  its  skin 
and  stopped  eating  before  it  was  as  full  grown  as  its 
companions,  what  would  become  of  it?  Would  it  be- 
come a  smaller  butterfly  than  the  others,  after  the  en- 
chanted sleep?  Oh,  no!  It  would  become  no  butterfly 


9(3  ANIMALS   AND   INSECTS 

at  all.  It  would  never  come  out  of  that  sleep,  be- 
cause it  would  not  have  stored  up  in  its  body  enough 
strength  to  undergo  the  change.  It  is  only  by  doing 
what  its  instinct  tells  the  caterpillar  to  do  that  it 
can  become  the  beautiful,  fairy-like  creature  it  is 
God's  purpose  for  it  to  be. 

We  do  not  know  just  what  God's  purpose  is  for 
us  when  we  are  through  with  this  body  in  which  we 
dwell,  but  it  is  no  doubt  something  far  more  won- 
derful than  the  happy,  care-free  life  of  the  butterfly. 
'^Eye  hath  not  seen,  nor  ear  heard,  neither  have  en- 
tered into  the  heart  of  man,  the  things  which  God 
hath  prepared  for  them  that  love  him." 


LESSON   12 
TOADS,   BATS  AND   OWLS 

MEMORY  VERSE 

And  God  said,  Let  the  earth  bring  forth  living  creatures  after 
their  kind,  cattle,  and  creeping  things,  and  beasts  of  the  earth  after 
their  kind:  and  it  was  so.  And  God  made  the  beasts  of  the  earth 
after  their  kind,  and  the  cattle  after  their  kind,  and  everything 
that  creepeth  u])on  the  ground  after  its  kind:  and  God  saw  that  it 
was  good.  Gen.  1 :  24,  25 

The  Purpose 

The  purpose  of  this  lesson  and  the  one  following  is  to 
give  the  child  more  of  an  insight  into  the  activities  and 
industries  of  the  living  creatures  about  him.  Instead  of 
feeling  repugnance  when  they  look  at  toads  or  bats, 
children  may  learn  to  be  interested  in  them  and  know 
their  value. 

''The  law  of  the  Lord  is  perfect"  applies  to  the  life  of 
other  creatures  as  well  as  to  our  own.  When  mankind 
ruthlessly  destroys  animals,  however  small  and  insignifi- 
cant they  may  seem  to  be,  without  due  knowledge  of 
their  activities,  he  may  be  thwarting  that  law  and  in 
many  cases  is  directly  harming  himself. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

In  all  probability  the  children  will  have  become  familiar 
with  the  life  history  of  the  toad  from  the  hatching  of  the 
eggs  to  the  time  when  the  tadpole  emerges,  tailless,  from 
the  water.    The  later  history  of  a  toad's  life  they  do  not 

97 


98  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

know  so  well.  But  they  should  understand  that  any 
member  of  that  famih^,  —  frogs,  toads,  and  tree-toads, 
—  are  of  great  help  to  us  in  ridding  us  of  harmful  insects. 

They  should  understand,  too,  that  harmful  as  applied 
to  the  insects  means  harmful  to  us  in  our  way  of  living, 
or  to  the  plants  and  trees  which  we  cultivate. 

Alany  of  the  animals  and  insects  most  harmful  and 
obnoxious  to  us  have  been  brought  here  from  other  regions 
where  they  do  no  harm.  For  example,  the  potato-beetle 
is  a  native  of  the  Colorado  desert.  In  its  natural  home  it 
was  rather  scarce  owing  to  lack  of  food,  but  it  acquired 
a  great  liking  for  the  potato  which  the  pioneers  began 
to  plant  in  the  west.  As  the  potato  is  extensively  culti- 
vated throughout  the  country,  the  beetle  has  followed  it 
and  has  increased  so  enormously  as  to  be  a  menace  to 
this  food  crop.  This,  however,  was  man's  fault  or  mis- 
fortune. The  beetle  in  its  own  home,  living  on  the  food 
which  nature  provided  for  it  there,  did  no  harm. 

The  teacher,  by  such  illustrations,  should  try  to  make 
clear  to  the  children  man's  responsibility  in  disturbing 
the  equilibrium  of  the  world. 

OPENING    TALK 

What  is  the  most  beautiful  insect  we  have  studied 
about  thus  far?  Is  it  the  most  useful?  What  is  the  real 
use  of  beautiful  things?  Who  is  the  mother  of  the  cater- 
pillar? Can  you  repeat  the  verse  which  says  that  a  sur- 
prise is  waiting  for  us? 

Some  of  the  moths  lay  eggs  which,  when  they  hatch 
out  into  caterpillars,  maj'^  do  a  great  deal  of  harm  to  trees 
and  plants.  There  is  another  creature,  not  beautiful  to 
look  at,  which  never  does  any  harm  at  all,  but  only  good, 
to  the  plants  we  like  to  grow.  We  will  hear  his  story  with 
that  of  two  other  of  our  humble  helpers. 


TOADS,   BATS  AND   OWLS 

The  world  is  so  full  of  friendly  helpers  that  we  have 
only  to  look  about  us  with  wide-open  eyes  and  loving 
hearts  to  find  a  friend  in  almost  everything  God  has 
created.  Suppose  we  listen  to  a  story  of  what  some 
of  these  little  creatures,  those  that  we  are  apt  to 
think  unattractive  and  disagreeable,  do  to  help  the 
world  and  so  to  help  us. 

You  know  the  common  toad,  —  the  funny,  fat 
hop-toad  that  hops  clumsily  along  the  sidewalk  at 
night,  or  just  sits  in  your  garden  and  blinks  his  eyes. 
He  seems  to  do  nothing  but  blink  his  eyes  at  you  and 
breathe  with  long  breaths  that  make  his  throat  puff 
out  as  if  he  had  swallowed  too  large  a  mouthful.  He 
seems  so  fat  and  lazy !  But  he  is  not  lazy,  and  if  he  is 
fat  it  is  only  because  he  is  taking  such  good  care  of 
your  garden.  For  he  eats  the  little  insects  that  are 
bent  upon  eating  your  flowers.  Did  you  know  that 
during  those  summer  nights  when  you  were  sleeping 
the  toad  was  helping  you?  He  lives  in  the  garden 
during  the  daytime,  but  you  seldom  see  him  because 
he  hides  himself  in  a  hole.  He  makes  this  hole  in  the 
oddest  way,  kicking  backwards  with  his  hind  legs 
and  burrowing  with  his  body  as  he  goes.  At  dusk  he 
comes  out  of  his  hiding  place  and  sits  down  near  the 
edge  of  the  garden  waiting  for  some  insect  to  come  by. 
That  is  the  way  of  the  spider,  also.     She  vsits  and 

99 


100  ANIMALS   AND   INSECTS 

waits,  too,  but  she  weaves  a  silken  web  to  catch  pass- 
ing invsects,  while  the  toad  catches  them  on  the  end 
of  his  tongue. 

Of  course  this  tongue  of  his  is  not  like  ours.  It  lies 
in  his  mouth  just  the  other  way  around  from  the  way 
ours  does.  The  tip  of  his  tongue  lies  near  his  throat 
and  the  root  is  fastened  to  the  front  of  the  lower  jaw. 

Now  when  he  catches  a  fly,  he  does  not  have  to 
leap  upon  it  the  way  pussy  catches  a  mouse.  He  just 
sits  still,  and  when  it  comes  near  he  shoots  out  his 
tongue,  and  before  you  can  see  what  has  happened 
the  fly  is  swallowed.  The  fat,  lazy  toad,  that  seems 
to  know  only  enough  to  blink  his  eyes,  is  so  marvel- 
ously  quick  with  his  tongue  that  our  eyes  cannot  see 
what  he  does.  You  would  not  think  that  of  him, 
would  you,  when  he  seems  so  lazy? 

But  he  is  not  lazy  any  more  than  the  spider  is.  If 
he  hopped  about  the  garden  all  the  time  he  would 
scare  away  all  the  insects.  Then  he  would  go  hungry 
and  the  insects  would  grow  fat  eating  our  pretty 
flowers.  So  it  is  better  for  us  that  the  toad  sits  still 
and  lets  the  insects  come  to  him. 

These  toads  know  more  than  we  think.  They 
naturally  live  in  gardens,  but  they  have  found  out 
that  insects  of  all  kinds  are  bewitched  to  fly  about 
the  street  lights.  So  over  to  the  street  lights  they 
go,  too,  and,  sitting  quietly  under  the  light,  make 
themselves  look  like  stones  or  lumps  of  earth. 

There,  while  they  seem  to  be  only  waiting,  they  are 
having  a  continuous  feast  of  insects,  big  and  Httle. 
You  seldom  see  them  move;  and  you  never  see  that 
lightning-like  tongue  go  out.    All  you  see  is,  that  the 


TOADS,    BATS  AND   OWLS  101 

instant  an  insect  alights  or  falls  near  the  toad  it  is 
gone  as  if  by  magic,  and  that  the  toad  sits  there 
swallowing  something. 

While  the  toad  sits  so  quietly  under  the  light 
catching  the  insects  that  come  near  him,  another 
little  night-hunter  is  busy  flying  round  and  round 
the  light,  swallowing  whole  mouthfuls  of  insects  as  he 
goes.  He  is  an  odd-looking  fellow.  He  has  wings  and 
he  seems  to  fly  like  a  bird.  Yet  he  is  not  a  bird  for 
he  has  no  feathers  upon  his  wings  or  his  body.  His 
wing{^  are  very  long  and  narrow  and  he  scarcely  seems 
to  move  them  as  he  goes  around  in  swift  circles.  His 
body  is  thick  and  short.  It  is  covered  with  soft,  silky, 
olive-brown  fur  like  that  of  a  mouse.  His  tiny  face 
looks  almost  like  that  of  a  fox,  with  its  bright  eyes 
and  long,  erect  ears.  His  mouth,  which  he  holds 
open,  is  full  of  sharp  teeth. 

The  English  call  this  little  night  creature  a  ^'flitter- 
mouse,"  but  ''the  little  brown  bat"  is  our  name  for  it. 

Have  any  of  you  ever  seen  a  bat?  Have  you 
stroked  its  soft,  silky  fur,  looked  at  its  bright  eyes, 
its  snub  nose  and  funny  ears? 

These  little  bats  sleep  during  the  day  as  the  toads 
do,  only  instead  of  digging  themselves  backwards  into 
a  hole  for  their  nap,  they  hang  themselves  upside 
down  by  their  feet  in  some  dark  place.  They  like  to 
hang  under  bridges  or  in  the  lofts  of  barns  or  even 
in  chimneys.  Sometimes  they  come  down  the  chimney 
and  fly  about  the  room. 

The  best  place  to  see  bats  is  near  an  electric  street 
light.  We  could  almost  call  it  a  Maypole  dance  of 
little  creatures  that  goes  on  during  warm  June  and 


102  ANIMALS   AND   INSECTS 

July  nights.  iVrouiid  the  light,  whirling  and  darting, 
go  the  large,  beautiful  moths,  the  smaller  moths,  the 
June  bugs,  mosquitoes,  gnats  and  countless  other 
insects.  Sometimes  they  are  dazed  by  the  bright 
light  or  are  overcome  by  the  heat  so  that  they  fall 
to  the  ground,  and  the  toads'  tongues  quickly  catch 
them.  All  the  while  up  above,  gliding  around  the 
pole,  in  smooth,  even  circles,  go  the  bats.  They  fly 
very  swiftly  with  their  mouths  wide  open,  scooping 
up  whole  mouthfuls  of  the  bewitched  insects. 

These  bats  are  very  cunning  to  look  at  and.  they 
can  be  tamed  and  made  into  interesting  pets.  So 
can  the  toad,  for  that  matter.  Both,  we  are  told, 
will  well  repay  the  time  it  takes  to  tame  them. 

But  it  is  not  as  pets,  it  is  as  little  helpers  that  we 
value  both  the  toad  and  the  bat.  They  take  care  of 
the  insects  for  us  at  night  as  the  birds  do  by  day. 
Indeed,  we  little  know  how  many  troubles  we  might 
have  if  the  birds,  the  toads,  the  bats  and  the  spiders 
did  not  help  us  by  eating  up  just  as  many  insects  as 
they  could  catch. 

Another  of  our  helpers  is  the  owl.  He  is  a  strange 
bird,  with  face  and  sometimes  ears  shaped  rather  like 
a  cat's  and  with  great,  round  eyes  and  a  funny  beak 
like  a  Roman  nose.  You  have  all  seen  pictures  of  owls, 
even  if  you  have  never  seen  a  real  one,  so  you  know 
what  a  wise,  thoughtful  look  they  have.  People 
often  say,  ''You  look  as  wise  as  an  owl"  when  any 
one  sits  thinking  with  his  eyes  wide  open.  And  the 
owls  surely  do  look  wise  as  they  sit  upon  a  branch  of 
a  tree  and  look  at  you  so  gravely. 

The  owls,  too,  are  night  creatures  and  sleep  by 


TOADS,   BATS  AND   OWLS  103 

day.  Their  nest  is  in  a  hollow  tree,  but  they  often 
sleep  upon  a  branch  outside  the  nest  where  it  is 
shaded  from  the  hght.  When  dusk  comes  they  slowly 
wake  up  and  then  begins  their  night  work.  With 
their  great  eyes  wide  open  they  can  see  anything  that 
moves,  and  with  swift  and  noiseless  flight  they  pounce 
upon  the  unsuspecting  mouse  or  mole. 

How  do  you  suppose  they  ever  see  from  their 
perches  in  the  trees,  a  small  gray  mouse  stealing  along 
over  the  ground  on  a  dark  night,  or  the  dirt-colored 
mole  that  lives  mostly  underground  and  comes  up 
only  for  a  short  time? 

Dogs  hunt  at  night,  but  they  run  along  the  ground 
and  their  sense  of  smell  is  so  keen  that  they  can  fol- 
low their  game  by  the  scent.  But  the  owls  see  their 
prey,  even  the  mouse  and  the  mole,  the  color  of  both 
of  which  is  so  like  the  soft  gray  night. 

The  cat  has  eyes  like  the  owl's,  so  it,  too,  can  see 
quite  clearly  when  it  seems  very  dark  to  us.  The 
pupils  of  their  eyes  are  so  large  that  they  receive 
rays  of  light  that  never  could  reach  our  eyes.  We 
have  to  feel  our  way  very  carefully  on  a  dark  night, 
but  they  can  not  only  see  where  they  are  going 
quite  well  but  they  also  see  those  small,  soft  gray 
animals. 

The  cat  will  creep  noiselessly  along,  and  then 
pounce  upon  the  mouse,  catching  it  every  time. 
Her  feet  seem  shod  with  velvet  and  her  fur  is  very 
soft,  so  she  slips  along  too  quietly  for  even  the  timid 
mouse  to  hear  her. 

Just  so  with  the  owl.  He  has  no  velvet  shoes  on 
his  feet,  but  he  does  not  need  them  for  he  goes 


104  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

through  the  air  on  his  wings.  The  wings  of  birds 
usually  make  a  noise;  but  the  owl's  wings  are  covered 
with  the  softest  and  thickest  of  feathers  and  the  air 
that  would  make  a  noise  striking  against  the  hard 
wing  of  the  crow  goes  softly  in  among  these  thick, 
downy  feathers.  So  the  owl  can  swoop  noiselessly 
down  upon  the  out-of-door  mouse  nibbling  the  farm- 
er's grain,  as  the  cat  steals  noiselessly  upon  the  in- 
door mouse  nibbling  in  the  pantry.  Both  can  see 
their  prey  and  catch  it  quickly. 

Besides  catching  mice  and  moles,  the  owls  eat  many 
insects.  They  seem  very  fond  of  cut-worms,  those 
destructive  cut-worms  that  live  under  the  roots  of 
plants  and  come  up  during  the  night  and  cut  the 
whole  plant  off  at  the  surface  of  the  ground. 

Isn't  that  a  mischievous  thing  for  these  cut-worms 
to  do?  They  are  most  apt  to  cut  tomato  plants, 
squashes  and  cucumbers.  They  do  not  even  eat  up 
what  they  destroy,  but  only  nibble  off  the  stalks  of 
the  young  plants.  Then  on  they  go  to  others,  leaving 
those  cut  to  wilt  and  die.  It  is  fortunate  for  us  that 
owls  will  eat  the  cut-worms,  for  we  find  it  very  hard 
to  catch  them.  They  hide  away  during  the  day  in 
burrows  where  we  might  not  find  them,  and  of 
course  we  could  not  spend  the  time  going  about  all 
night  with  a  lantern  just  to  catch  and  to  kill  those 
mischievous  little  cut- worms. 

The  owls  attend  to  that.  They  are  great  friends 
of  the  farmer.  If  the  farmer  had  been  more  friendly 
to  the  owl,  there  would  be  many  more  of  them  than 
there  are,  and  fewer  cut-worms  to  injure  his  crops. 

When  the  farmer  ignorantly  shoots  the  owls,  then 


TOADS,   BATS   AND   OWLS  105 

the  mice,  the  moles  and  the  cut-worms  increase  on  his 
land.  They  eat  the  food  he  has  planted  for  himself 
and  they  cause  him  nmch  trouble.  Yet  he  has  fool- 
ishly killed  the  owl  before  finding  out  what  its  special 
work  is,  and  whether  it  is  harmful  or  helpful  to 
him. 

If  we  ignorantly  interfere  with  God's  plans  we 
must  suffer.  For  God's  laws  are  right.  By  them  He 
has  made  and  still  makes  the  world.  We  are  His 
people,  and  we  must  help  Him  as  do  the  rest  of  the 
things  He  has  created. 


LESSON    13 
HUMBLE   HELPERS 

MEMORY   VERSE 

He  praycth  best  who  loveth  best 
All  things  both  great  and  small; 
For  the  dear  God  who  loveth  us, 
He  made  and  loveth  all. 

Coleridge 

The  Purpose 

This  lesson  is  a  continuation  of  Lesson  12  and  gives 
the  children  a  further  insight  into  the  working  of  the 
Divine  laws. 

It  serves  to  show  them  that  the  world  was  made  for  all, 
not  for  a  few.  One  animal  or  species  of  animal  cannot 
live  to  the  detriment  of  the  rest.  Neither  can  different 
species  be  wholly  exterminated  without  disturbing  the 
balance  of  the  whole. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

The  story  of  the  earthworm  is  given  here  to  show  the 
children  how  great  a  work  such  a  lowly  creature  is  able 
to  perform.  Interest  should  also  be  awakened  in  this 
often-scorned  little  creature  by  pointing  out  the  fact  that 
it  is  quite  wonderfully  organized. 

Knowledge  of  the  earthworm's  usefulness  may  do 
more  to  open  the  children's  minds  to  the  realization  of 
God's  presence  in  the  world  than  stories  of  the  intelli- 
gence and  usefulness  of  the  animals  which  seem  to  them 
more  important. 

106 


HUMBLE   HELPERS  ]U7 

Try  to  make  a  vivid  picture  of  the  ants  and  the  aphids, 
the  corn  and  the  lady-bugs,  as  these  stories  ilkistrate 
well  the  balance  of  nature. 

Review  the  memory  verse  for  the  last  lesson,  as  it 
applies  to  this  one  also.  Then  read  the  lines  chosen  for 
this  lesson,  which  the  children  will  learn  readily  and 
gladly. 

OPENING    TALK 

Would  you  like  to  know  all  that  goes  on  in  the  animal 
world  at  night  while  you  are  asleep?  There  are  such 
busy  workers  everywhere,  helping  to  make  and  keep  our 
world  fit  for  us  to  live  in.  And  the  very  humblest  of  all 
our  helpers  do  a  most  important  work  and  help  to  keep 
the  balance  of  nature. 


HUMBLE   HELPERS 

There  is  another  little  creature  that  comes  above 
ground  at  night  and  stays  under  ground  all  day,  un- 
less the  rain  drives  it  out  of  its  burrow,  or  we  digit 
up.  It  is  a  very  humble  little  animal  and  many  fool- 
ish people  dislike  extremely  to  touch  it.  But  the 
earthworm  is  perfectly  harmless  and  very  clean. 
Moreover,  it  is  one  of  the  greatest  little  helpers  that 
ever  a  farmer  had. 

The  greatest  scientist,  Darwin,  has  said,  ''It  may 
be  doubted  whether  there  are  many  other  animals 
which  have  played  so  important  a  part  in  the 
history  of  the  world  as  have  these  lowly-organized 
creatures." 

The  earthworm  is  like  a  tiny  plowman,  continually 
working  over  and  enriching  the  soil  in  our  gardens, 
under  our  lawns  and  in  our  moist  pastures  and  farm 
lands. 

How  do  you  suppose  this  tiny  plowman  goes  to 
work  to  turn  over  the  soil?  All  we  ever  see  it  do 
w^hen  we  dig  it  up  is  to  hide  quickly,  burrowing  its 
way  out  of  sight.  Yet  that  is  just  the  way  this  little 
plowman  does  its  work,  by  burrowing  under  the  sur- 
face of  the  ground. 

The  earthworm  makes  a  long  hole  or  burrow  a  foot 
and  more  in  length,  deep  into  the  ground.  As  it 
burrows,  it  eats  the  earth.    In  its  tiny  gizzard  the 

108 


HUMBLE   HELPERS  109 

particles  of  earth  are  ground  up  into  a  fine,  rich  soil. 
This  is  mixed  with  certain  salts  of  lime  which  are  fur- 
nished from  the  worm's  digestive  organs.  Then  it  is 
all  cast  out  by  the  worm  upon  the  surface  of  the  ground 
above  its  burrow.  You  must  have  seen  those  little 
lumps  of  fine  soil  over  the  lawn  and  in  your  garden. 

When  you  were  helping  weed  the  garden,  did 
you  ever  see  ends  of  grass  and  pieces  of  leaves  half 
pushed  into  little  holes?  The  earthworm  gathered 
those  the  night  before  and  pulled  them  into  the 
mouth  of  its  burrow  to  shut  it  up  safely.  It  is 
going  to  eat  some  of  the  bits  of  leaves  and  will  line 
the  upper  part  of  the  burrow  with  the  rest,  if,  indeed, 
you  do  not  pull  them  all  up  to  make  your  garden 
look  tidier,  as  some  people  do.  It  is  much  better  to 
leave  them  there  for  little  Mr.  Plowman  to  use  to 
fertilize  your  garden. 

As  you  shall  learn  in  another  lesson  it  is  grass  and 
leaves  and  other  vegetation  accumulating  year  after 
year  that  makes  the  soil  in  your  gardens  so  different 
from  that  in  a  sand  pit  or  a  gravel  bank.  Although 
each  worm  pulls  underground  such  a  very  little  bit 
of  grass  and  leaves  each  night,  yet,  as  many,  many 
thousands  of  worms  work  continually  night  after 
night  and  year  after  year,  you  can  imagine  how  much 
good  they  do.  Busy  little  plowmen  they  are,  making 
the  finest  and  richest  of  soil  right  there  near  the  sur- 
face where  you  need  it  most. 

The  farmer  plows  and  harrows  and  cultivates  the 
soil  on  his  farm  and  adds,  to  enrich  it,  those  same  salts 
of  lime  which  the  earthworm  adds.  With  great  labor 
the  farmer  can  take  away  the  larger  stones  and  even 


110  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

many  of  the  smaller  ones,  but  he  cannot  make  the 
earth  itself  any  finer. 

And  do  you  know,  the  earthworm  is  not  so  different 
from  other  animals,  for  all  its  shapelessness.  It  has 
a  gizzard  much  like  the  one  cook  takes  from  your 
Thanksgiving  turkey,  only  the  earthworm's  gizzard  is 
very,  very  tiny.  It  has  a  heart  and  a  stomach,  a  brain 
and  a  nervous  system.  Although  it  has  no  real  legs 
or  feet,  all  along  on  either  side  of  its  body  are  pairs  of 
bristles,  so  small  that  they  cannot  be  seen  without  a 
magnifying  glass.  These  serve  as  legs  to  the  earth- 
worm, and  help  it  to  make  its  way  over  the  ground. 

Who  would  have  thought  that  an  earthworm  was 
made  with  such  care!  It  seems  so  simple  and  com- 
mon a  creature  to  us.  Just  a  worm!  And  yet  in  that 
plain-looking  little  body  a  heart  beats  and  red  blood 
flows.  God  made  the  earthworm  and  gave  it,  small 
and  shapeless  as  it  seems  to  be,  very  important  work 
to  do.    It  is  His  servant,  and  one  of  our  helpers. 

There  are  so  many  friendly  little  helpers  that  I 
never  could  tell  you  about  them  all.  But  some  of 
them  are  so  interesting  that  you  must  hear  about 
what  they  do. 

Do  you  remember  the  name  of  those  very  small, 
green  flies  that  the  ants  milk  as  cows?  Yes,  aphids 
is  the  name.  They  live  on  the  underside  of  leaves  and 
on  green  stems.  You  remember,  too,  that  the  ants 
sometimes  take  the  aphids  away  from  the  shrubs 
where  they  find  them,  and  put  them  on  other  plants 
with  juicier  leaves  so  they  will  give  more  honey-deWo 

Now  in  some  places  there  is  a  family  of  aphids 
that  is  very  fond  of  the  juice  that  they  suck  from  the 


HUMBLE   HELPERS  111 

roots  of  the  corn,  and  there  is  a  certain  family  of  ants 
that  Hve  in  those  corn  fields.  Perhaps  the  ants  live 
there  to  be  near  their  cows,  —  who  knows?  However 
that  may  be,  they  attend  to  these  cows  with  great 
care,  for  in  the  autumn  they  go  around  and  gather 
up  the  tiny  eggs  which  the  mother  aphids  have  laid 
in  the  ground  to  hatch  out  the  next  spring.  The  ants 
know  that  the  eggs  are  not  safe  over  winter  in  the 
ground  and  that  the  cold  weather  will  destroy  almost 
all  of  them;  so  into  their  cities  they  carry  the  eggs 
and  store  them  all  along  their  tunnels  and  corridors. 

When  the  first  warm  days  of  spring  come  the  eggs 
hatch.  Then  the  ants  take  out  the  young  aphids  and 
place  them  upon  the  roots  of  the  first  httle  plants 
that  come  up  in  the  cornfield.  But  after  the  corn  is 
up  what  do  the  ants'  do  but  pick  them  up  once  more 
and,  carrying  them  to  the  corn  plants,  put  them 
safely  into  the  tunnels  which  they  have  dug  for  them 
along  the  young  roots. 

All  this  helps  the  ants,  of  course.  It  is  fine  for 
them  and  for  the  aphids.  The  aphids  are,  without 
any  trouble  on  their  part,  transplanted  to  a  land  of 
plenty,  while  the  ant  has  an  abundance  of  the  most 
dehcious  honey-dew.  But  how  about  the  farmer 
and  the  corn?  The  farmer  planted  that  corn  for  him- 
self, not  for  the  ants  and  the  aphids.  He  tends  it 
with  great  care  so  it  will  bear  fine,  juicy  ears  of  sweet 
corn  for  him,  or  firm  yellow  ears  for  his  poultry  and 
cattle.  If  the  aphids  are  on  the  corn  they  will  suck 
juice  out  of  the  roots.  Then  the  leaves  will  not 
have  juice  enough  to  make  over  into  sap. 

You  know  what  happens  when  the  leaves  cannot 


112  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

do  their  work  and  provide  the  plant  with  sap.  The 
plant  will  die.  Even  if  there  are  some  leaves  still  at 
work  so  the  plant  does  not  die,  yet  the  corn  upon  the 
ear  will  not  be  good  because  it  needs  all  the  moisture 
that  the  roots  can  drink  in  and  the  leaves  manufac- 
ture into  sap. 

What,  then,  can  the  poor  farmer  do?  He  has 
planted  the  corn  with  great  care  and  has  spent  so 
much  time  hoeing  it  and  tending  it,  and  then,  alas! 
those  mites  of  ants  turn  it  into  a  pasture  for  their 
tiny  cows.  And  those  same  tiny  creatures  increase 
so  fast  that  the  poor  farmer  is  quite  distressed. 

But  there  is  a  friendly  helper  about,  and  the 
farmer  does  not  often  lose  his  corn  because  of  the 
ants  and  aphids.  That  is  not  the  way  God  has 
planned  the  world,  for  a  few  to  have  everything. 
That  is  selfishness,  and  selfishness  breaks  God's  law. 

Now,  what  do  you  think  is  there  in  the  cornfield 
ready  to  help  the  farmer?  I  do  not  believe  you  can 
ever  guess,  so  I  will  tell  you.  Young  lady-bugs! 
They  crawl  down  among  the  roots  of  the  corn  and 
eat  up  a  great  many  of  the  ants'  cows,  but  they  save 
the  corn.  Did  you  suppose  that  the  lady-bugs  that 
crawl  up  and  down  your  window-sashes  in  the  winter 
and  early  spring  are  some  of  the  best  friends  that  a 
farmer  has? 

It  seems  as  if  they  did  nothing.  But  it  is  just  as  it 
was  with  the  toad.  They  may  seem  to  be  doing  noth- 
ing when  they  are  on  your  window  in  the  winter,  but 
in  the  spring  and  summer,  when  the  aphids  are  eating 
the  farmer's  corn  and  fruit,  the  lady-bugs  are  busy 
enough.    Those  that  we  see  in  om'  windows  are  so 


HUMBLE   HELPERS  113 

pretty,  too,  in  their  glossy  red  coats,  each  side  so 
evenly  spotted  with  little  black  dots,  that  you  never 
could  mistake  them  for  any  other  bug  or  beetle.    If 
you  are  careful  of  them  through  the  winter  they  will 
fly  out  of  the  window  in  the  spring  and  away  they 
will  go  to  the  cornfields,  the  fruit  trees  and  the  rose 
bushes.     For  the  aphids  are  very  fond  of  the  leaves 
of  all  of  these.    Next  summer  watch  the  rose  bushes 
and  the  nasturtiums,  and  see  if  some  ants  will  not 
come  and  milk  their  little  cows  while  you  are  watch- 
ing.   Look  ever  so  carefully  and  you  will  see  the  ants 
crawl  up  the  stem,  stroke  the  aphids  with  their 
antennae,  and  drink  up  the  tiny  drops  of  honey-dew. 
So  whenever  you  find  a  lady-bug  in  the  house  in 
the  spring  and  sunamer,  pick  it  up  very  carefully  and 
take  it  to  the  nearest  rose  bush  or  nasturtium  or 
apple   tree   or   cornstalk.     That   is   the  way  good 
farmers  do. 

Throughout  all  the  world  there  are  insects  and 
animals  which  do  great  service  by  preventing  other 
creatures  from  selfishly  taking  everything.  The  birds 
keep  caterpillars  from  eating  all  the  leaves  of  the 
trees;  the  toads  and  bats  and  spiders  eat  up  many 
of  the  flies  and  mosquitoes  and  troublesome  moths; 
while  the  woodpecker  finds  the  borers  which  are  hurt- 
ing the  trees  by  boring  under  the  bark. 

Helpers  are  everywhere.  We  do  not  have  to  work 
alone.  Indeed,  nothing  in  the  world  has  to  work 
alone  if  it  is  working  according  to  God's  law. 


LESSON   14 
THE   BIRDS 


MEMORY   VERSE 

Behold,  my  servants  shall  sing  for  joy  of  heart. 

7s.  65:14 

The  Purpose 

Birds  are  among  the  most  friendly  and  interesting  of 
our  neighbors,  and  they  give  us  further  evidence  of  the 
unity  of  all  life.  The  birds  are  useful  to  man  in  much 
the  same  way  as  the  bat  and  the  toad  are,  but  they  add 
another  qualitA^,  an  element  of  beauty  and  art  that  gives 
joy  to  the  world. 

Joy  of  heart  is  a  Christian  virtue  which  is  not  enough 
appreciated.  The  lesson  on  the  birds  has  been  used  to 
show  the  happiness  which  this  joyous  nature  brings  to 
the  world. 

It  is  this  quality  which  children  bestow  in  greatest 
measure.  This  lesson  may  help  them  to  realize  what  a 
gift  they  have;  to  cultivate  that  gift,  and  to  be,  in  just 
this  year  of  their  lives,  among  those  servants  of  God 
who  sing  for  joy  of  heart. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

Children  see  so  much  of  birds  and  are  taught  so  much 
about  them  in  the  schools,  that  this  lesson  is  designed 
rather  more  to  show  the  nature  of  birds  than  to  describe 
their  habits., 

114 


THE   BIRDS  115 

Their  loving  nature,  their  usefulness  in  ridding  the 
world  of  pests,  and  the  joyous  songs  which  brighten  our 
lives,  are  the  points  upon  which  we  ought  to  dwell. 

Urge  the  children  to  watch  the  birds  at  nesting  time, 
and  to  do  all  they  can  to  guard  the  nests.  As  this  lesson 
may  be  taught  after  the  bird  migration  to  the  south,  it  will 
be  well  to  speak  of  the  birds  which  stay  in  your  locality 
all  winter  and  what  care  boys  and  girls  may  give  them  at 
that  season  in  providing  sheltered  feeding  places. 

Much  added  teaching  material  may  be  secured  if  de- 
sired. Colored  pictures  of  birds  and  their  nests  will  be 
found  in  any  public  library,  and  excellent  leaflets,  each 
containing  a  colored  print  and  description  of  a  bird,  may  be 
secured  from  the  Audubon  Society  at  three  cents  each.  All 
material  chosen  should  be  used  to  illustrate  and  lead  up 
to  the  lesson  climax,  the  gift  to  the  world  which  the  joyous 
heart  makes. 

Hand  Work 

The  children  should  make  three  lists  on  the  page  of 
the  leaflet:  one  list  of  the  birds  they  have  seen  and 
know,  one  of  the  birds  whose  songs  they  have  heard,  and 
one  of  the  nests  they  have  seen. 

OPENING    TALK 

We  have  studied  about  one  bird  already;  which  one 
was  it?  Yes,  the  owl.  What  good  thing  does  the  owl  do 
for  the  world?  Have  you  ever  heard  his  call?  It  is  a 
queer  ''Hoot!  hoot!"  Much  as  the  owl  does  for  us,  he 
cannot  make  us  glad  in  the  way  some  of  the  other  birds 
do.  For  they  give  to  the  world  their  songs,  which  add 
so  much  to  the  joy  of  springtime.  Our  story  to-day  will 
tell  us  about  the  singing  birds. 


THE   BIRDS 

What  curious  ways  insects  and  animals  have  of 
making  their  homes  and  of  taking  care  of  them- 
selves. Ants,  earthworms,  toads,  spiders  and  bees 
all  build  tunnels,  houses  or  cities  in  different  ways 
and  for  different  purposes. 

The  birds  build  houses,  also,  but  they  are  quite 
different  from  the  houses  that  these  other  creatures 
build.  They  are  nests,  all  woven  from  material  that 
the  birds  find,  not  from  material  that  the}^  make  them- 
selves. And  these  nests  are  really  cradles,  meant  for 
the  eggs  and  for  the  baby  birds,  not  as  homes  for  the 
father  and  mother,  for  after  the  little  birds  have  grown 
large  enough  to  fly,  the  nest  is  seldom  used  again. 

In  the  spring,  when  the  birds  have  come  back  to 
us,  they  choose  a  place  for  the  nest,  and  begin  to  hunt 
about  for  the  material  with  which  to  build  it.  The 
chipping  sparrows  find  horse-hairs ;  the  crows  get  small 
sticks;  the  humming-birds  strip  off  fr(3m  the  baby 
ferns  their  soft  brown  winter  blankets;  the  robins 
use  dry  grass  and  mud;  and  the  orioles  find  string. 

What  sharp  eyes  the  chipping-sparrow  must  have 
to  be  able  to  find  the  horse-hairs  which  it  weaves 
into  its  small,  well-made  nest.  You  would  need 
sharper  eyes  than  the  chipping-sparrow 's  and  the 
greatest  of  patience  to  see  the  nest  made.  For  the 
chipping-sparrows  are  very  shy  and  would  not  let 

IIG 


THE  BIRDS  117 

you  come  anywhere  near  them.  You  cannot  watch 
them  from  your  window,  for  they  always  choose  a 
leafy  bower  in  which  to  build.  The  leaves  make  a 
nice  roof  to  keep  the  rain  away  from  their  babies 
and  also  a  screen  to  keep  away  prying  eyes. 

The  Baltimore  oriole  hangs  its  woven  nest. from 
the  drooping  ends  of  branches  in  a  place  that  seems 
quite  perilous.  Yet  it  is  really  very  safe,  for  scarcely 
an  enemy  can  reach  it,  and  even  severe  winter  storms 
do  not  tear  it  down.  How  prettily  it  is  made  of  the 
milk-weed  fiber,  with  string  looped  through  and 
through  it.  And  how  warm  and  soft  it  is  inside  where 
the  baby  orioles  will  soon  hatch  out  of  the  little  eggs. 

Robins  are  not  such  careful  builders  as  the  orioles 
and  the  chipping-sparrows,  and  their  nests  are  not 
so  pretty.  They  make  the  outside  of  dry  grass  and 
straw,  then  plaster  it  with  mud.  But  the  inside  is 
all  lined  with  horse-hair  and  it  is  smooth  and  soft. 

Neither  are  the  robins  as  timid  as  the  chipping- 
sparrows.  They  often  come  and  build  upon  your 
piazza.  They  will  even  make  the  nest  while  you 
sit  there,  if  you  are  very  quiet.  But  you  must  be 
intent  upon  your  own  work  and  not  curious  about 
theirs  or  they  will  fly  away  with  the  pieces  of  straw, 
or  they  may  hop  about  the  lawn  scolding  you  until 
you  stop  looking  at  them.  Then  they  will  come  so 
silently,  with  the  bits  of  straw  and  the  mouthfuls 
of  mud,  and  directly  before  you  they  will  make 
their  nest  without  your  being  able  to  tell  how  they 
do  it;  for  if  you  watch  them,  away  they  fly. 

Birds  are  not  so  very  unlike  us,  are  they?  For  it 
often  distresses  us  to  be  watched  too  closely  while 


118  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

we  work.  They  are,  in  fact,  like  us  in  many  ways, — 
these  little  birds  that  look  so  different.  The  father 
and  mother  birds  love  each  other,  and  wait  upon 
each  other  and  work  together  to  take  care  of  their 
babies  as  our  own  fathers  and  mothers  do. 

Aft?er  the  nest  has  been  built  and  the  eggs  laid, 
and  the  mother  bird  is  sitting  upon  them,  the  father 
bird  feeds  her  and  sings  to  her.  When  she  leaves 
the  nest,  he  sometimes  takes  her  place  so  the  eggs 
will  not  become  cold.  After  the  eggs  have  hatched 
both  the  father  and  the  mother  bird  work  all  day 
to  find  food  enough  for  their  hungry  children. 

Who  has  seen  four  baby  robins  reaching  out  of 
the  nest  their  great  wide-open  mouths?  At  first  it 
seems  as  if  there  was  nothing  but  mouths  until  you 
see  the  queer,  feather  less  bodies.  They  are  hungr}^ 
all  the  time.  No  matter  how  often  father  or  mother 
robin  comes  with  a  worm,  the  baby  robins  still 
clamor  for  more.  But  they  grow  fast,  and  soon  the 
down  on  their  bodies  is  replaced  by  feathers. 

The  next  time  a  robin  alights  on  the  lawn,  watch 
him  and  see  if  he  is  not  trying  to  catch  worms.  His 
eyes  are  so  sharp  that  he  can  see  the  slightest  move- 
ment of  the  earth  above  a  worm  where  it  is  working 
in  its  tunnel  under  ground.  He  hops  about  and 
turns  his  head  this  way  and  that.  Then,  suddenly, 
down  goes  the  robin's  beak  and  up  comes  the  earth- 
worm. Very  slowly  the  earthworm  comes  out  of 
the  ground.  It  holds  on  to  the  earth  with  the 
different  rings  or  segments  of  its  body,  trying  so 
hard  to  keep  itself  down  in  the  ground.  But  the 
robin  is  the  stronger,  and  bracing  himself  with  his 


THE   BIRDS  119 

feet,  he  steadily  pulls  up  the  worm  and  is  off  to  the 
nest  to  feed  his  hungry  babies. 

Robins  eat  many  other  worms  and  insects,  but 
they  never  catch  them  in  the  air  or  pick  them  from 
the  trees  as  do  some  of  the  other  birds.  They  get 
them  all  from  the  ground. 

Did  you  ever  see  a  Baltimore  oriole  flashing  his 
gorgeous  black  and  gold  coat  through  the  pink  and 
white  mass  of  a  blossoming  apple  tree,  while  he 
pecked  here  and  there  and  everywhere  among  the 
blossoms  to  catch  harmful,  hiding  insects,  and  sing- 
ing his  clear  note  as  he  went?  He  is  feeding  himself 
then,  because  his  nest  is  not  finished  in  apple  blos- 
som time,  but  when  the  nest  is  ready  and  the  baby 
orioles  are  hatched,  he  is  just  as  good  a  hunter.  In- 
deed, there  are  two  hunters,  then,  for  each  nest,  and 
a  hard  time  they  have  filling  those  hungry  mouths. 

It  is  very  fortunate  for  us  that  the  baby  birds  are 
so  hungry,  for  they  eat  a  great  many  of  the  cater- 
pillars and  insects  just  at  the  time  when  the  leaves 
are  tender.  If  it  were  not  for  the  birds  the  leaves 
on  many  of  our  trees  and  plants  would  all  be  eaten. 
Then  the  trees  and  plants  would  die. 

All  the  time  the  baby  birds  are  in  the  nest  the 
father  and  mother  birds  watch  over  them  with 
loving  care  and  devotion.  They  bring  them  food; 
they  keep  the  nest  clean  and  dry,  sheltering  the 
birdies  with  their  own  wings  and  bodies  from  the 
cold  and  wet.  If  any  of  the  little  ones  are  too  am- 
bitious and  try  to  get  out  of  the  nest  before  their 
wings  are  ready  for  flying,  father  and  mother  have  a 
great  deal  to  say  about  it.    You  can  often  hear  them 


120  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

scolding  the  too  ambitious  ones,  for  they  know  well 
that  if  one  of  the  baby  birds  tries  to  fly  before  his 
wings  are  strong  enough  he  will  fall  to  the  ground. 
The  parent  birds  could  not  pick  him  up  and  put 
him  safely  back  into  the  nest.  The  httle  bird  might 
die  of  cold  before  his  wings  became  strong  enough 
to  carry  him  to  a  safe  place,  and  then,  too,  the  cat 
might  catch  him. 

When  the  time  to  fly  does  come  there  is  great  ex- 
citement. Father  and  mother  coax  and  call  and 
fly  back  and  forth  between  a  nearby  branch  and  the 
nest  to  show  their  timid  birdlings  how  it  is  done  and  to 
encourage  them  to  try.  The  great  eagles  who  build 
nests  high  up  in  the  crags  often  fly  just  under  their 
young  to  bear  them  up  in  case  they  should  fall. 

When  at  last  the  baby  bird  ventures  off  the  edge 
of  the  nest  and  half  flies  down  to  the  ground,  the 
parent  birds  coax  and  chatter  until  he  flutters  up 
to  a  safe  place  on  a  shrub,  where  he  may  take  a  long 
rest.  Then  the  other  nestlings  follow,  one  at  a 
time,  in  the  same  way.  The  parents  feed  the  little 
ones  for  days  after  they  come  from  the  nest,  trying 
all  the  while  with  chirpings  and  twitterings  and 
sharp  calls  to  teach  the  httle  birds  how  to  feed 
themselves  and  how  to  avoid  danger. 

Did  you  know  before  that  birds  had  to  bring  up 
their  children?  And  did  you  think  that  much  of 
the  noise  you  hear  in  the  trees  and  shrubs  is  the 
warning  that  a  too-venturesome  little  bird  is  having 
from  his  parents?  Our  own  fathers  and  mothers 
could  not  have  more  to  say  to  their  children  than 
these  little  bird  fathers  and  mothers  say  to  theirs. 


THE   BIKDS  121 

But  birds  use  their  voices  for  something  more 
than  to  scold  and  advise  their  children.  The  thi'oat 
of  the  song  bird  is  like  a  httle  music  box  from  which 
the  sweetest  songs  pour  forth;  songs  that  help  make 
the  world  a  happier  place  in  which  to  live. 

It  is  just  at  the  time  when  they  are  building  their 
nests  and  having  their  busy  life  together  with  their 
little  ones  that  the  birds  sing.  Is  it  not  a  lovely 
thing  that  each  day  they  greet  the  morning  with  a 
song?  It  almost  seems,  does  it  not,  as  if  they  were 
thanking  their  Maker  for  this  beautiful  world  and 
for  the  joy  of  being  together  and  of  serving  the 
little,  helpless  birdlings  they  work  so  hard  to  feed. 
St.  Francis  of  Assisi,  a  monk  who  lived  in  the  thir- 
teenth century,  thought  so;  and  because  his  heart 
was  so  thankful  for  all  his  blessings  that  he,  too, 
longed  to  sing  his  thanks  and  praise,  he  called  the 
birds  his  little  brothers  and  sisters. 

Two  things  that  are  a  genuine  service  the  birds 
do  for  us.     They  rid  our  gardens  and  orchards  of 
pests  that  would  destroy  them,  and  they  bring  us 
cheer  with  theu^  wonderful  melody.     Their  music  is 
one  of  God's  gifts  to  us,  a  gift  of  joy  and  delight,  for 
which,  with  the  other  wonderful  things  in  the  world, 
our  hearts  may  give  thanks.    Victor  Hugo,  the  great 
French  poet,  tells  us  to  ^^be  like  the  bird,"  for  then 
we  too  may  bless  the  world  with  a  gift  of  gladness. 
These  dear  little  servants  of  God  show  us,  who  are 
His  servants  too,  how  to  keep  a  heart  of  joy  while 
we  do  our  tasks.    They,  above  all  His  creatures,  help 
us  to  understand  the  words  of  the  prophet  Isaiali: 
''Behold,  my  servants  shall  sing  for  joy  of  heart." 


LESSON   15 
ANIMAL  FRIENDS 

MEMORY   VERSE 

Trust  in  the  living  God,  who  giveth  us  richly  all  things  to  enjoy. 

1  Tim.  6  :  17 

The  Purpose 

While  the  activities  of  the  insects  and  smaller  animals 
described  in  the  preceding  lessons  have  been  used  to  show 
the  work  that  they  do  to  help  make  the  world  a  home  for 
all,  this  lesson  is  used  to  show  the  direct  benefit  which 
the  domestic  animals  are  to  mankind. 

By  using  the  gift  God  has  given  him  of  taming  and  train- 
ing these  higher  animals,  man  has  been  able  to  become 
a  more  important  factor  in  the  progress  of  the  world. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

In  telling  the  children  about  the  usefulness  of  the 
domestic  animals,  bring  out  the  special  gift  that  God 
has  given  man,  whereby  he  has  been  able  to  discover 
various  uses  to  which  these  animals  could  be  put  as  well 
as  to  train  them  for  these  uses. 

Lay  stress,  also,  upon  the  ability  of  the  animals  to 
adapt  themselves  to  their  environment.  This  charac- 
teristic is  especially  serviceable  to  man,  as  it  is  by  the 
help  of  these  animals  that  he  has  been  able  to  live  in 
many  places  where  otherwise  he  could  hardly  survive, 
certainly  could  not  improve  his  condition. 

122 


ANIMAL   FRIENDS  123 

Show  also  that,  as  we  have  taken  these  animals  from 
their  wild  environment,  where  they  were  free,  to  help 
us,  we  owe  them  the  kindness  and  protection  that  we 
have  taught  them  to  need. 

Hand  Work 

The  children  are  to  make  a  list  of  all  the  animals  that 
are  man's  friends  and  tell  how  they  are  useful. 

OPENING   TALK 

Do  you  remember  the  story  of  St.  Francis  and  the 
wolf  of  Gubbio?  ^  What  did  this  same  St.  Francis  call 
the  birds?  He  was  a  friend  to  animals,  and  they  were  his 
friends,  too,  as  they  may  be  ours.  Some  of  man's  best 
friends  are  his  helpers  among  the  animals.  When  we 
think  what  they  have  done  for  him  I  am  sure  we  shall 
want  to  trust  more  in  the  loving  God  who  giveth  us 
richly  all  things  to  enjoy. 

1  In  Living  Together,  by  Frances  M.  Dadmun,  an  earlier  book 
in  this  course. 


ANIMAL  FRIENDS 

Among  all  the  animals  that  have  proved  themselves 
friendly  helpers,  there  are  none  so  friendly  or  so  help- 
ful as  those  that  live  with  us.  Those  domestic  ani- 
mals, as  we  call  them,  were  once  as  wild  as  the  wolf, 
or  the  buffalo,  or  the  mountain  goat.  They  have  be- 
come oui'  friends  and  our  servants  because  of  the  long 
ages  of  care  and  training  that  man  has  given  them. 

No  one  knows  when  first  the  dog  lost  his  wild, 
wolfish  nature,  and  became  man's  friend.  Even 
when  men  were  so  wild  themselves  that  they  lived 
in  caves,  they  had  dogs  living  with  them  in  the 
friendly  way  that  ours  do  now. 

As  long  ago  as  the  time  of  Abraham,  shepherds 
tended  sheep  in  the  pastures,  and  the  wool  upon  the 
sheeps'  back  grew  long  and  soft  enough  to  spin  and 
to  weave  into  woolen  cloth.  When  the  sheep  were 
wild  animals  they  had  no  such  wool.  Then  it  was 
short  and  stiff  and  coarse,  wholly  unfit  for  spinning 
into  threads  long  enough  to  weave  into  cloth.  The 
skins  of  the  wild  sheep  furnished  men  with  clothing 
then,  and  it  was  not  until  they  had  been  taken  care 
of  for  a  long,  long  time  that  the  wool  began  to  be 
fine  enough  and  long  enough  to  use  for  weaving. 

Sheep  and  goats  have  always  been  among  those 
animals  which  are  most  useful  to  man,  for  they  need 
very  little  care  and  give  great  return.    Sheep  can  live 

124 


ANIMAL   FRIENDS  125 

comfortably  upon  whatever  grass  or  small  plants  and 
leaves  they  find  in  rocky,  hilly  pastures, -— places 
where  cattle  and  horses  could  not  live.  In  Scotland 
sheep  graze  in  such  rocky  country  that  the  shepherd 
hunself  cannot  follow  them;  he  has  to  depend  upon 
the  sheep  dog  to  gather  the  sheep  and  bring  them 
into  the  fold. 

Goats  not  only  furnish  haii'  for  cloth  and  their 
flesh  for  food,  but  they  also  give  milk  as  cows  do. 
Our  cows  need  special  care  and  food  of  fresh  grass 
and  hay  if  they  are  to  give  us  good  milk,  but  goats 
need  little  food,  and  that  is  of  the  simplest  kind  that 
scarcely  any  other  animal  would  eat.  They  eat  such 
strange  things  for  food  that  people  even  joke  about 
their  living  upon  the  old  tin  cans  that  are  tlii'own 
about  in  uncared-for  places. 

In  many  parts  of  Europe  and  Asia  people  live  upon 
the  milk  of  the  goat,  and  the  butter  and  cheese  which 
are  made  from  it.  These,  with  bread  and  a  few  onions, 
make  the  principal  food  of  the  poorer  people  of  Italy. 
The  camel  is  another  animal  which  men  could 
not  do  without.  Have  you  ever  seen  one?  They  are 
strange-looking  creatures,  surely,  not  nearly  so  at- 
tractive to  us  as  our  horses.  Yet  where  the  camels 
live  the  people  love  them  as  we  do  our  pet  horses,  and 
in  their  eyes  they  seem  quite  as  graceful.  It  is  no 
wonder  that  they  feel  as  they  do  toward  their  camels, 
for  they  are  as  useful  as  any  creature  that  man  has 
ever  tamed.  Long  caravans  of  them  travel  across 
the  great  deserts  and  over  the  mountains  in  Asia 
and  Africa,  carrying  merchandise  from  one  place  to 
another. 


126  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

Like  the  goats,  camels  need  very  little  to  eat,  and 
what  they  do  eat  no  other  creature  seems  to  want. 
Old  baskets  and  matting  seem  to  give  them  as  much 
pleasure  as  a  bone  gives  a  dog.  Indeed,  they  are  so 
fond  of  dry  things  that  they  will  eat  the  thatch  off 
the  roofs  of  houses  whenever  they  can  reach  it.  In 
one  place  in  Africa  where  the  houses  are  made 
entirely  of  thatch  supported  by  poles,  a  caravan 
of  camels  would  eat  the  village  up  if  the  houses 
were  not  protected  with  vines  bearing  long,  sharp 
thorns. 

Perhaps  you  have  already  learned  how  one  of  the 
stomachs  of  the  camel  is  fitted  to  retain  much  of  the 
water  that  it  drinks.  If  it  were  not  for  those  small 
sacs  which  absorb  the  water  from  the  stomach  and 
keep  it  until  it  is  needed,  a  camel  could  never  go  four 
or  five  days  without  a  drink  of  water.  More  than 
that,  the  humps  upon  their  backs  are  composed  of 
fat,  and  these  are  gradually  absorbed  and  used  as 
nourishment  if  the  camels  are  obliged  to  go  long 
without  food. 

Is  it  any  wonder,  then,  that  camels  are  called 
''ships  of  the  desert,"  when  they  are  able  to  traverse 
those  dry,  sandy  wastes  laden  with  provision  and 
merchandise  for  their  masters,  but  needing  very  little 
provision  for  themselves? 

The  camel,  too,  gives  milk,  and  from  the  long, 
silky  hair  which  grows  on  parts  of  its  body  a  very 
soft,  warm  cloth  is  made. 

As  it  is  with  the  plants  and  flowers,  so  it  is  with 
animals,  —  each  kind  is  wonderfully  adapted  to  live 
in  the  locality  where  it  is  found.    The  camel  would 


ANIMAL   FRIENDS  127 

be  quite  out  of  place  feeding  in  the  pastures  where 
our  fine  Jersey  cows  graze,  while  the  cows  could  not 
give  a  drop  of  milk  or  even  live  if  they  had  only  the 
food  the  camel  eats. 

While  the  camel  is  so  well  fitted  for  traveling  and 
carrying  burdens  in  the  land  where  he  lives,  the 
elephants  are  quite  as  well  suited  to  be  burden- 
bearers  in  the  jungles  of  India  and  Africa.  For  they 
are  so  tall  and  so  large  that  they  can  push  their  way 
through  the  thick  mass  of  undergrowth,  while  their 
feet  are  so  broad  that  they  do  not  sink  into  the  soft, 
wet  earth. 

Elephants  are  very  intelligent  animals  and  can  be 
trained  to  do  almost  anything  that  their  masters 
attempt  to  teach  them.  The  trunk  of  the  elephant 
is  so  made  that  with  it  he  can  lift  large  objects  as 
easily  as  we  do  with  our  two  arms,  while  smaller 
articles  like  pins  can  be  picked  up  with  the  end  of 
the  trunks  as  easily  as  with  our  fingers. 

Have  you  ever  been  to  a  circus  and  seen  the  re- 
markable tricks  the  performing  elephants  can  do? 
Have  you  seen  them  sit  at  a  table  and  eat,  using 
napkins  and  dishes  as  nicely,  almost,  as  we  do? 

While  they  have  been  trained  to  do  many  curious 
things,  it  is  by  the  real  work  they  do  that  we  judge 
their  intelligence.  Elephants  load  and  unload  boats, 
build  walls,  and  help  ship-builders  by  dragging  huge 
beams,  for  they  can  lift  and  drag  with  ease  a  beam 
which  twenty  men  could  carry  only  with  great  diffi- 
culty. Elephants  are  true  workers,  for  after  they 
have  been  trained  to  do  a  certain  task,  they  keep 
right  at  it  and  work  with  a  will.    What  is  more, 


128  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

they  know  the  difference  between  shirking  and  be- 
ing trustworthy. 

Mary  Howitt  tells  an  interesting  story  of  an  ele- 
phant whose  trade  was  wall  building.  He  had  been 
trained  to  lay  a  course  of  stone  and  then  call  the 
overseer  to  see  that  it  was  properly  done  before  going 
on  with  the  next  course.  This  elephant  did  not  have 
the  patience  of  the  orb-web  spider.  He  seemed  to 
get  tired  of  building  each  course  of  stone  so  carefully, 
so  he  shirked  on  the  last  one.  But  he  knew  that  his 
work  was  not  good,  and  after  he  had  made  the  sign 
that  he  was  ready  for  the  overseer,  the  sly,  old  fellow 
leaned  against  the  part  of  the  wall  that  was  carelessly 
done  so  the  man  would  not  see  it.  When  the  over- 
seer, however,  commanded  him  to  move,  the  ele- 
phant, knowing  well  that  his  poor  work  would  be 
seen,  without  one  word  from  the  overseer  pulled 
down  the  bad  work  and  commenced  to  build  it  over 
again  more  carefully. 

Strong  as  they  are,  elephants  are  also  very  gentle. 
The  proboscis,  or  trunk,  that  can  lift  such  huge 
burdens  and  strike  such  terrific  blows,  can  be  used 
as  softly  and  carefully  as  a  mother's  arm.  They  love 
children,  and  are  as  tender  with  them  and  with  the 
vsick  as  human  beings  are.  They  have  been  known  to 
lift  children  up  and  place  them  safely  upon  their 
backs  or  by  the  side  of  the  road  when  they  were  in 
danger.  And  once  when  there  was  such  a  pestilence 
that  the  sick  people  even  lay  in  the  streets,  the  ele- 
phants in  passing,  without  any  word  from  their  mas- 
ters, would  hft  the  sick  ones  and  put  them  gently 
to  one  side. 


ANIMAL   FRIENDS  129 

Besides  being  very  intelligent  they  have  great 
memories,  and  are  very  affectionate.  They  have 
been  known  to  remember  people  after  years  of 
separation,  even  recognizing  grown  persons  whom 
they  had  loved  as  children. 

Horses  cannot  work  or  carry  loads  by  themselves 
as  the  elephants  do,  but  they  are  very  intelligent 
animals,  and  great  workers. 

Their  memory  is  remarkable.  They  never  forget 
persons  who  have  been  good  to  them,  and  they  often 
remember  quite  as  long  those  who  have  hurt  or 
vexed  them.  A  delicately  bred  horse  is  as  sensitive 
as  a  person  and  cannot  bear  a  sharp  or  harsh  voice 
or  rough  ways.    Such  horses  are  trained  by  kindness. 

Have  you  heard  the  story  of  how  Alexander  the 
Great,  when  a  boy,  was  able  to  get  control  of  the 
beautiful  horse,  Bucephalus,  a  horse  which  none  of 
his  father's  trainers  could  mount?  He  did  it  by 
thoughtfulness  and  by  kindness.  Bucephalus,  though 
a  powerful  horse,  throwing  from  his  back  all  those 
who  had  tried  to  mount  him,  recognized  the  loving 
strength  of  the  boy  and  became  Alexander's  most 
faithful  friend.  For  a  faithful  dog  or  horse  or  ele- 
phant is  more  than  a  servant,  —  it  is  a  friend,  loving 
with  true  devotion  those  who  show  it  love  and  care 
and  comradeship. 

It  is  a  marvelous  gift  which  God  has  given  us,  — 
that  of  training  animals  and  teaching  them  to  do  as 
we  wish.  Why  do  the  animals  obey  us,  do  you 
suppose?  Perhaps  it  is  because  they  feel  the  love 
and  interest  that  we  give  them;  for  if  we  start  to 
train  an  animal  we  learn  to  love  it.    All  animals  know 


130  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

when  we  love  them.  Even  wild  animals  feel  it.  For 
there  are  great-hearted  men,  full  of  love  for  all  God's 
creatures,  who  are  able  to  go  without  harm  into  the 
thick  mountain  forests  and  the  wildest  country, 
places  where  most  of  us  would  not  think  it  safe  to 
go.  In  some  way  the  wild  animals  know  that  these 
men  will  not  harm  them  and  they  in  turn  do  no 
harm. 

Why  should  we  not  think  of  ourselves  as  the  older 
brothers  of  the  animals?  Are  we  not  all  God's 
creatures?  And  should  we  not  give  love  and  care  to 
those  creatures  which  God  has  given  to  us  to  use 
and  to  enjoy? 


LESSON   16 
THE   DOG 


MEMORY   VERSE 

A  friend  loveth  at  all  times. 

Prov.  17:  17 

The  Purpose 

Faithfulness  is  one  of  the  important  lessons  that  should 
be  learned  from  the  story  of  the  dog.  This  animal  has 
been  so  long  a  companion  of  man  that  he  has  acquired 
some  very  human  traits.  One  of  these  seems  to  be  the 
will  to  obej^     Another  is  self-sacrificing  love. 

The  noblest  dogs  are  not  servile  creatures,  obeying 
through  fear.  Their  obedience,  as  their  love,  comes 
from  a  higher  intelligence. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

There  are  so  many  stories  of  the  intelligence  and 
faithfulness  of  dogs  that  the  teacher  will  find  it  hard  to 
confine  the  children  to  the  lesson  as  given.  They  should 
be  allowed  to  tell  what  they  know  about  the  intelligence 
and  devotion  of  dogs,  and  the  teacher  should  use  the 
stories  they  tell  to  enforce  the  same  lessons  that  are 
brought  out  here. 

The  love  and  sacrifice  of  the  dog  for  his  master  ought 
to  be  made  very  impressive.  It  will  help  the  children  to 
catch  a  glimpse  of  what  Dr.  John  Fiske  called  'Hhe 
cosmic  roots  of  love." 

131 


132  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

Hand  Work 

Each  child  is  to  write  a  short  story  of  some  dog  that 
he  knows  or  that  he  has  heard  about. 

Ask  the  child  to  illustrate  his  story  by  pasting  on  a 
picture  of  a  dog  which  he  has  found  and  cut  out. 

If  the  dog  in  the  picture  is  the  same  kind  as  the  dog 
in  his  story,  so  much  the  better. 

OPENING    TALK 

What  can  j^ou  tell  about  some  of  our  useful  animals? 
Were  they  always  tame  and  obedient? 

Can  you  tell  why  the  camel  and  the  elephant  are 
more  adapted  to  some  countries  than  the  horse?  How 
is  the  nature  of  a  trained  elephant  different  from  that  of 
a  wild  one?     Tell  about  the  trained  elephants. 

What  is  the  nature  of  a  finely  bred  horse? 

If  man  has  taken  these  animals  away  from  their  wild 
homes  and  made  them  dependent  upon  him  for  food  and 
care,  what  do  we  owe  them? 

What  do  we  owe  to  God  in  return  for  the  special  gift 
that  He  has  given  us  of  being  able  to  take  these  wild 
animals  and  train  them  for  our  use? 

We  shall  hear  to-day  about  another  of  our  animal 
friends,  the  one  boys  and  girls  know  the  best  of  all.  It 
is  the  dog. 


THE   DOG 

The  dog  has  been  a  friend  of  mankind  for  so  long 
a  time  that  we  cannot  think  of  men  at  all  without 
him,  and  his  attachment  to  people  is  so  well  known 
that  he  is  called  ''man's  faithful  friend." 

It  means  something  to  be  called  a  faithful  friend, 
does  it  not?  You  and  I  would  like  to  feel  that  we 
deserved  that  name. 

The  Bible  says,  ''A  faithful  friend  loveth  at  all 
times."  That  is  just  the  way  a  dog  seems  to  love 
his  master,  —  at  all  times.  If  his  master  is  tired  he 
will  come  and  lie  down  beside  him,  as  much  as  to 
say,  ''I  will  not  disturb  you,  let  us  rest  together." 
Or  if  his  master  should  be  sad  or  worried  he  will 
go  to  him,  sit  by  him,  or  lean  up  against  his  knees, 
looking  into  his  face  with  sad,  sympathetic  eyes. 
Indeed  dogs  are  so  sensitive  that  they  can  tell  from 
a  glance  of  then-  master's  eyes,  without  a  word  being 
spoken,  whether  anything  is  wrong  with  him.  If  his 
master  is  sick  or  helpless,  the  true  and  faithful 
friend  can  hardly  be  taken  from  the  one  he  loves  so 
devotedly. 

Have  you  read  the  story  of  ''Grey-Friar's  Bobby"? 
He  was  a  little  Skye  terrier  that  followed  his  master 
to  his  grave,  and  would  not  be  taken  from  it  until  he 
died  himself.  Terriers,  they  say,  love  their  masters  as 
much  as  that. 

133 


134  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

Newfoundland  dogs  love  children,  and  will  pro- 
tect them  from  danger.  Not  only  that,  but  the 
Newfoundland  is  so  faithful  that  he  will  patiently 
bear  being  annoyed  or  even  hurt  by  little  children 
who  know  no  better.  There  was  once  a  Great  Dane 
that  was  left  to  guard  a  baby  sleeping  in  its  carriage 
upon  the  piazza.  A  friendly  dog  came  up  and  just 
peeped  into  the  baby  carriage  out  of  curiosity.  He 
meant  no  harm,  but  the  Great  Dane  punished  him 
severely  for  even  going  near  the  carriage. 

Any  good  dog  will  give  his  life  for  his  master,  or 
for  any  of  his  master's  family;  and  a  reliable  watch- 
dog is  as  true  to  his  post  as  a  soldier.  He  will  not 
leave  it  even  if  it  should  mean  death  to  remain 
there. 

Most  of  the  dogs  that  we  know  are  household 
pets,  living  in  the  house  with  the  family  and  seeming 
like  one  of  them.  An  intelligent  and  affectionate 
dog  soon  wins  the  love  of  every  member  of  the 
household,  and  great  is  the  sorrow  if  any  harm 
should  come  to  him. 

But  there  are  other  dogs  that  are  trained  to  do 
special  work.  Did  you  ever  see  a  collie  drive  cows 
to  pasture?  It  is  very  interesting  to  watch  him. 
If  a  cow  goes  out  of  the  road,  the  collie  will  nip  at  her 
hind  legs,  and  back  into  the  road  she  will  go.  He 
will  bark  behind  the  slow  ones  to  make  them  go 
faster,  and,  running  along  by  the  side  of  the  herd, 
nip,  nip,  he  will  go  at  the  legs  of  any  cow  that  strays 
out  of  line  to  get  a  mouthful  of  juicy  grass  or  nice, 
tender  leaves.  A  herd  of  cows  with  a  well-trained 
collie  to  drive  them  will  keep  almost  as  even  a  line 


THE  DOG  135 

as  you   children   do   when  you   are    fiUng   out    of 
school. 

All  over  Europe  sheep  are  tended  by  the  sheep- 
dogs. The  master  has  only  to  speak  or  even  look, 
and  away  the  dog  will  run  to  gather  in  the  sheep 
scattered  over  many  miles  of  rough,  hilly  country. 
He  will  bring  them  all  together  in  one  place,  all,  for  he 
does  not  miss  a  sheep.  The  shepherd  himself  could  not 
do  that.  If  it  were  not  for  those  knowing,  watchful 
sheep-dogs  the  shepherds  would  lose  so  many  of 
their  flock  in  the  rough  Highlands  of  Scotland  that 
it  would  not  pay  to  keep  sheep  there,  although  the 
country  is  wonderfully  adapted  for  their  grazing. 

Then  there  are  the  dogs  in  Belgium,  which  have 
been  trained  to  draw  the  two-wheeled  carts  in  which 
the  milk  is  carried  to  the  cities  from  the  farms. 
These  dogs  are  strong  and  can  draw  quite  a  heavy 
load  over  the  roughly  paved  streets.  They  start 
out  early  in  the  morning  and  often  remain  in  town 
all  day,  lying  down  upon  the  ground  to  rest  when 
the  farmers'  wives,  who  walk  beside  the  carts,  stop  to 
sell  the  milk.  The  dogs  of  Belgium  are  as  useful  as 
horses,  while  they  are  cheaper  to  keep  and  much 
easier  to  care  for. 

The  Eskimo  dogs  are  like  horses,  too.  In  the  far 
north  they  draw  the  sledges  of  the  Eskimos.  Six 
or  eight  of  them  are  harnessed  together  in  pairs, 
and  over  the  rough  or  slippery  ice  they  drag  the 
sledges  as  no  other  animals  could,  for  the  pads  on 
the  bottom  of  their  feet  do  not  slip  on  the  ice. 

Those  brave  men  who  have  been  away  off  to  the 
frozen  north  to  try  to  discover  the  north  pole,  have 


136  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

become  very  fond  of  their  dogs,  and  have  written 
much  about  their  faithfulness.  Lieutenant  Peary, 
who  after  many  attempts  reached  the  north  pole, 
tells  how  impossible  it  would  have  been  for  him  to 
have  accomplished  his  purpose  if  it  had  not  been 
for  the  faithful,  hardworking  Eskimo  dogs. 

For  many  years  men  have  been  trying  to  find 
the  south  pole  as  well,  but  they  could  not  travel 
very  far  on  the  ice  without  some  animals  to  draw 
the  sledges  of  provisions.  There  are  no  dogs  living 
near  the  south  pole  like  the  Eskimo  dogs  of  Green- 
land. One  man,  named  Amundsen,  thought  that 
if  he  took  some  Eskimo  dogs  with  him,  they  might 
be  able  to  carry  sledges  with  enough  provisions  on 
them  to  last  while  he  made  the  long,  long  journey 
from  the  ship  over  the  ice  to  the  south  pole.  Sure 
enough,  the  dogs  did  the  work;  and  because  of  their 
help  in  drawing  the  heavy  loads  of  provisions 
Amundsen  finally  reached  the  south  pole,  and  came 
back  in  safety. 

So  neither  the  north  nor  the  south  pole  could 
have  been  reached  if  it  had  not  been  for  the  Eskimo 
dogs  and  their  faithful  endurance.  They  say  that, 
''with  the  exception  of  the  most  intelligent  horses 
and  elephants,  the  dog  is  the  only  animal  that  takes 
a  real  interest  and  pleasure  in  his  work.  Whatever 
work  he  may  be  doing,  he  puts  his  heart  into  it." 

Switzerland  is  the  home  of  the  St.  Bernard  dogs. 
Have  you  ever  seen  one  of  them?  They  are  as  large 
as  a  Shetland  pony. 

Near  the  top  of  a  mountain  called  the  Great  St. 
Bernard  is  a  place  where  men  can  cross  over  the 


THE   DOG  137 

Alps  from  Switzerland  to  Italy.  Such  a  place  is 
called  a  pass.  This  pass  of  the  Great  St.  Bernard 
is  very  dangerous.  Before  the  tunnels  were  built 
through  the  Alps  for  the  railroads,  many  persons 
were  obliged  to  travel  over  this  dangerous  route. 
Not  very  far  from  the  pass  is  a  convent  where  good 
men  live  and  to  these  good  men  the  dogs  belong. 
Their  work  is  to  rescue  those  who  lose  their  way 
in  the  dangerous  snow-storms,  which  are  so  frequent 
on  the  mountain  passes.  They  know  an  hour  before 
it  begins  that  a  storm  is  coming,  and  they  are  ready 
and  eager  to  start  out  on  their  errands  of  mercy. 
One  dog  has  a  bottle  of  medicine  attached  to  his 
collar  and  the  other  a  large,  warm  cloak  tied  to 
his  back.  Because  of  the  remarkable  sense  of  smell 
that  these  dogs  have,  they  are  able  to  trace  any  man 
who  has  lost  his  way  in  the  storm.  After  they  have 
found  the  lost  traveler,  and  he  has  helped  himself 
to  the  medicine  and  put  on  the  cloak,  the  dogs  lead 
him  to  the  convent,  where  he  is  well  taken  care  of 
until  the  storm  ceases. 

If  the  poor  traveler  has  become  numb  with  the 
cold,  or  is  buried  in  the  snow,  they  will  always  find 
him  and  will  stay  by  and  bark  constantly  until  they 
are  heard  at  the  convent.  Then  the  good  monks 
come  out  and  carry  the  man  to  shelter.  These  dogs 
are  so  powerful  that  they  can  soon  dig  a  man  out 
of  the  snow  even  if  he  is  deeply  buried  in  it.  For 
the  wind  blows  and  howls  over  those  high  moun- 
tain passes  so  fiercely  that  any  one  who  falls  from 
exhaustion  is  soon  covered  over  with  the  whirling, 
blinding  snow. 


138  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

There  was  one  celebrated  dog  of  the  Great  St. 
Bernard  pass  that  perished  in  one  of  those  terrible 
storms.  His  name  was  Barry,  and  he  wore  a  medal 
upon  his  collar,  stating  that  he  had  saved  forty  lives. 
This  dog  wore  no  silver  collar,  as  many  English 
dogs  do  when  they  have  saved  a  life,  but  he  must 
have  been  just  as  proud  of  the  medal,  and  I  am 
sure  he  must  have  known  why  he  wore  it,  —  the 
brave  dog! 

Dogs  are  much  like  us  in  that  they  know^  when 
they  have  done  well,  or  when  they  have  done  wrong, 
and  they  are  as  happy  to  be  praised  as  a  child,  and 
just  as  ashamed  when  they  are  rebuked.  Indeed, 
a  dog  is  often  very  miserable  when  he  knows  that 
he  has  disobeyed.  He  will  come  to  you  with  his 
tail  down,  slinking  along  in  such  a  way  that  one 
has  only  to  see  him  to  cry  out,  ''Oh,  Peter  has  done 
something  wrong,  just  look  at  him!" 

He  tries  so  hard  to  tell  you  that  he  is  sorry  and 
that  he  will  not  do  so  again.  He  is  in  truth  a 
most  disconsolate  dog  until  you  have  said,  ''All 
right,  Peter,  be  a  good  boy,"  —  and  then  he  is 
happy. 

Isn't  it  odd,  too,  that  dogs  dislike  to  be  laughed 
at?  They  know  when  they  are  objects  of  ridicule, 
and  they  do  not  like  it  any  more  than  we  do. 

A  dog  responds  quickly  to  the  praise  of  his  master 
or  mistress,  and  will  try  very  hard  to  deserve  it. 
When  he  knows  that  he  has  done  well,  he  walks 
along  with  his  head  up,  his  ears  up,  and  his  tail  up, 
and  he  even  lifts  his  feet  up  and  steps  proudly  as  he 
walks.    But  it  is  not  for  himself  that  he  cares.     If 


THE   DOG  139 

he  could  talk  he  would  not  say,  ''I  am  glad  I  did 
this;"  it  would  rather  be,  ''How  glad  my  master 
will  be." 

For  the  life  of  a  faithful  dog  is  bound  up  with  his 
master's.  He  loves  his  master  with  such  true  devo- 
tion that  his  master's  wishes  are  his  first  desire. 

Would  it  not  be  worth  while  to  try  to  be  as  faith- 
ful a  little  friend  to  those  you  love  as  the  dog  is, 
and  as  obedient? 


LESSON    17 
BEAVERS 

MEMORY   VERSE 

None  of  us  liveth  to  himself. 

Rom.  14:7 

The  Purpose 

In  this  series  of  lessons  a  study  of  the  activities  and 
intelHgence  of  the  insects  and  smaller  animals  has  been 
followed  by  a  study  of  the  almost-human  nature  of  the 
domestic  animals.  The  exceptional  intelligence  shown 
by  the  beaver,  a  shy  creature  of  the  wilds,  living  a  life 
wholly  apart  from  that  of  man,  has  been  chosen  for  this 
last  lesson  in  Part  II.  In  it  the  child  is  taken  back  to 
nature  again  and  shown  an  animal  possessing  much  of 
the  intelligence  of  the  trained  elephant,  yet  having  had 
no  association  with  man. 

The  child's  mind,  having  been  thus  opened  to  the  con- 
sciousness of  the  unity  of  life  throughout  nature,  will  be 
ready  for  the  history  of  the  world's  growth,  —  the  sub- 
ject of  the  last  half  of  the  book. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

The  remarkable  intelligence  with  which  the  beavers 
plan  and  carry  on  their  work  is  worthy  of  a  picturesque 
and  understanding  presentation.  It  would  be  well  for 
the  teacher  to  read  one  or  more  of  the  books  about 
beavers  in  the  list  recommended  (see  p.  xxi),  in  order  to 

140 


BEAVERS  141 

have  a  broader  knowledge  of  the  subject  than  can  possi- 
bly be  given  in  the  lesson  story. 

Lay  special  stress  upon  the  fact  that  in  just  living  his 
life  and  doing  his  own  work  the  beaver  is  helping  man- 
kind, and  so  teaches  us  that  in  this  w^orld  none  lives  to 
himself  alone. 

In  later  lessons  the  children  will  learn  more  about  the 
importance  of  the  beavers'  work  in  changing  the  surface 
of  the  earth. 

Hand  Work 

The  pupils  are  to  write  answers  to  the  questions  on 
the  leaflet. 

OPENING    TALK 

We  think  the  dog  is  intelligent  because  he  lives  with 
people.  But  there  is  an  animal  which  can  think  and  plan, 
and  build  houses  and  dams  in  a  very  wonderful  way,  that 
has  never  been  taught  by  man.  Do  3^ou  know  its  name? 
Have  you  ever  seen  its  house  or  dam?  Suppose  we  hear 
the  story  of  the  beaver. 


BEAVERS 

You  know  what  it  means  to  be  called  as  ''indus- 
trious as  an  ant"  or  as  ''busy  as  a  bee/'  but  did  you 
ever  hear  any  one  say  this:  "Oh,  he  works  as  hard 
as  a  beaver!" 

Do  you  know  what  a  beaver  does?  He  is  a  builder 
and  a  wood  chopper!  He  cuts  down  trees  and  uses 
them  to  build  his  house,  also  to  construct  dams 
across  the  rocky  streams.  Wouldn't  you  like  to 
know  what  the  beavers  are  like,  and  how  they  cut 
the  trees,  and  how  they  make  their  houses  and 
dams? 

First,  then,  there  are  always  a  father  and  a  mother 
beaver  who  leave  the  old  pond  and  the  old  home  and 
start  out  to  build  a  new  home  for  themselves  and 
for  their  little  ones.  They  sometimes  travel  long 
distances  before  they  find  a  brook  flowing  through 
just  such  a  place  as  would  make  them  a  good  home. 

You  never  would  think  to  look  at  them  that  these 
beavers  were  so  clever.  They  look  like  great  over- 
grown muskrats  and,  indeed,  they  are  something 
like  muskrats,  only  they  are  much  larger  and  much 
more  intelligent.  They  have  small  heads,  and 
bright  little  eyes,  and  large  clumsy  bodies  covered 
with  thick  fur.  Their  hind  legs  are  long  and  strong 
and  end  in  webbed  feet  like  those  of  a  duck,  for 
they  are  great  swimmers;  but  their  front  legs  are 

142 


BEAVERS  143 

quite  short  and  the  hand-hke  front  paws  are  used 
to  grasp  and  carry  things.  When  they  swim  they 
use  their  broad,  flat  tails  as  rudders;  when  they  fell 
a  tree  they  use  them  as  props  to  support  their  bodies 
during  the  hard  work.  But,  strangest  of  all,  they 
use  them  to  warn  the  other  beavers  by  slapping 
hard  upon  the  water  or  upon  the  ground,  in  case  of 
danger. 

The  beavers  know  that  they  must  have  certain 
things  where  they  are  to  build  their  homes.  There 
must  be  water  and  there  must  be  plenty  of  trees  with 
soft,  juicy  bark,  such  as  aspens,  alders  and  willows, 
for  that  is  what  they  live  upon,  and  of  these  they 
must  cut  enough  to  last  them  over  the  long  winter. 
Wood  must  be  used,  too,  for  building  the  dam  and  the 
house.  Then,  these  trees  must  grow  near  the  water 
so  they  can  be  transported  easily  when  cut;  for  the 
beavers  can  carry  a  heavy  load  when  swimming  in 
the  water,  but  on  land  it  would  be  quite  a  difficult 
task.  Besides  the  kind  and  number  of  trees,  and 
their  nearness  to  water,  the  water  itself  must  be  a 
brook  flowing  through  such  a  place  that,  when  a 
dam  is  built  across  it,  and  the  water  is  forced  back, 
a  pond  will  be  formed. 

Haven't  you  ever  in  your  play  built  a  dam  of 
stones,  or  sticks  and  leaves,  across  some  brook,  and 
seen  the  small  pond  that  is  made  by  the  water  which 
cannot  get  over  the  dam?  Did  you  know  that 
almost  all  ponds  and  lakes  are  made  because  some- 
thing has  stopped  the  flow  of  the  water  of  a  stream? 
The  beavers  seem  to  know  this,  and  they  build  dams 
so  they  can  have  a  pond  just  where  they  want  it, 


144  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

and  just  as  deep  as  they  want  it.  Are  they  not 
clever  Uttle  fellows? 

Now  this  father  and  mother  beaver,  after  they 
have  selected  with  great  care  just  the  place  that  will 
make  them  and  their  children  a  good  home,  and 
have  seen  that  there  are  plenty  of  the  juicy-barked 
trees  near  by,  set  to  work  to  dam  the  brook,  build 
their  house,  and  get  in  the  winter's  supply  of  food. 

They  begin  by  felling  trees.  Now  a  man  with  a 
sharp,  steel  axe  to  swing  thinks  he  is  working  hard 
when  he  cuts  down  trees,  but  these  beavers  do  not 
seem  to  get  so  tired.  They  work  all  night  just  as 
hard  as  they  can,  felling  trees  and  cutting  them  up. 

What  do  you  suppose  they  use  to  cut  the  trees 
down?  They  use  their  teeth,  their  long,  sharp  front 
teeth!  They  sit  down  as  a  dog  does,  on  their  hind 
legs;  they  rest  against  their  broad,  flat  tails,  and,  put- 
ting their  forepaws  against  the  tree,  begin  to  gnaw 
it  down,  first  turning  the  head  to  one  side  and  then 
to  the  other.  But  instead  of  gnawing  as  a  mouse 
gnaws,  or  as  a  horse  eats  his  crib,  these  beavers 
take  bites  out  of  the  tree  with  their  sharp  teeth, 
and  leave  the  ground  covered  with  chips,  as  a  man 
does  when  he  cuts  down  a  tree  with  an  axe.  The 
beavers  are  only  as  large  as  a  medium-sized  dog. 
Think  of  a  dog  biting  down  a  tree  as  thick  through 
as  his  own  body! 

Sometimes  the  father  and  mother  beaver  work  to- 
gether, sitting  on  opposite  sides  of  the  tree,  though 
more  often  each  works  on  a  different  tree.  When 
any  one  of  the  beavers  feels  that  a  tree  is  about  to 
fall,  he  gives  the  ground  a  hard  slap  with  his  tail, 


BEAVERS  145 

and  all  the  beavers  scamper  away  until  the  tree  has 
fallen.  Then  they  come  back  and  begin  to  cut  off 
the  branches,  if  there  is  time  before  the  day  breaks, 
for  it  often  takes  all  night  to  cut  down  the  larger 
trees,  those  a  foot  in  diameter.  But  whatever  they 
do  not  finish  before  sunrise  they  are  again  hard  at 
work  upon  by  sunset,  and  all  night  long  they  work 
just  as  hard  as  they  did  the  night  before.  If  the 
Uttle  beavers  are  more  than  a  year  old  they  help,  too, 
but  felHng  the  larger  trees  and  dam-building  seems 
to  be  the  work  of  the  father  and  mother  beavers. 

The  branches  of  the  trees  they  drag  down  to  the 
stream.  Then,  taking  the  heavy  end  in  their  mouths 
and  thi'owing  the  branched  part  over  then-  shoulders, 
they  swim  to  the  place  where  they  are  to  build  the 
dam.  There  they  place  the  branches  side  by  side, 
and  one  above  another,  with  the  branched  ends 
pointing  down  stream,  because  they  know  that  the 
trees  will  be  anchored  better  that  way.  Busily  they 
work,  and  hard,  carrying  branches  and  smaller 
pieces  of  wood.  When  they  have  a  firm,  solidly 
built  dam,  they  fill  in  the  spaces  with  stones  and 
mud.  Down  they  dive  to  the  bottom  of  the  stream 
and  up  they  come  with  their  two  hands  full  of  mud, 
or  with  a  large  stone  hugged  up  under  their  chins. 
The  mud  and  stones  they  put  into  the  holes,  which 
they  fill  up  tight. 

Does  not  that  seem  like  men?  Even  our  dogs, 
much  as  they  know,  would  not  know  enough  to  put 
mud  and  stones  into  a  hole  to  keep  the  water  from 
flowing  through. 

Some  of  the  beavers  are  careful  enough  before 


14G  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

they  begin  to  cut  a  tree  to  look  up  and  see  that  the 
top  is  not  entangled  by  other  tree-tops,  so  it  will  fall 
easily  when  cut.  And  some  of  the  older  beavers  are 
thoughtful  enough  to  cut  a  tree  so  it  will  fall  toward 
the  water,  for  by  falling  in  that  direction  it  will  make 
the  distance  less  over  which  they  must  transport  the 
wood. 

You  know  that  oftentimes  your  mother  or  father 
will  say  to  you,  ''Why  didn't  you  stop  to  think? 
You  could  have  done  that  so  much  better  if  you  had 
thought  a  moment  before  you  did  it." 

It  seems  remarkable  that  these  small  animals 
apparently  stop  to  think  about  their  work,  and  to 
plan  it,  as  men  do.  They  have  not  been  taught  or 
trained  by  men,  either,  as  oiu*  dogs  and  horses  and 
elephants  have  been.  For  the  beavers  are  wild 
animals.  They  have  been  trained  by  that  ''still 
small  voice"  which  we  name  instinct,  and,  guided 
by  that  voice,  they  do  what  we  would  think  im- 
possible for  an  animal  to  do  if  we  did  not  surely 
know  that  this  building  work  was  theirs. 

After  the  dam  has  been  made  water-tight,  the 
house  must  be  built  that  is  to  be  their  home  for  the 
long  winter.  With  this  work  the  little  beavers 
help.  Back  and  forth  they  swim  from  the  wood 
pile  on  the  shore,  carrying  wood  to  the  spot  near  the 
middle  of  the  pond  where  they  have  chosen  to  build 
their  house. 

While  some  cut  the  juiciest  trees  into  lengths  one 
and  a  half  to  two  feet  long  to  be  used  as  food  for  the 
winter,  others  take  the  longer  sticks  and  poles  and 
start  to  build  the  house.    They  go  to  work  the  way 


BEAVERS  147 

an  Indian  starts  to  make  a  tepee.  The  poles  are 
placed  in  a  circle  with  their  upper  ends  coming  to  a 
point.  Then  boughs  are  interlaced  and  heavier  wood 
is  put  on  until  the  outside  of  the  house  is  so  firmly 
built  that  a  man  could  stand  upon  it.  As  soon  as 
the  pond  begins  to  freeze  over  they  plaster  all  the 
house  on  the  outside  with  mud,  which  they  bring 
up  from  the  bottom  of  the  pond  in  their  ''hands,"  and 
hugged  against  their  breasts.  When  the  mud  freezes 
they  have  a  house  so  strong  that  no  hungry  bear 
or  wolf  or  coyote  could  tear  it  apart  and  hurt  the 
beavers  curled  up  inside. 

After  the  outside  has  become  firm  and  strong  they 
gnaw  out  a  large  room  inside,  above  the  water  line. 
One  half  is  used  for  a  bedroom  and  has  the  floor 
higher  than  the  other  part,  so  it  will  be  well  drained. 
They  make  their  bed  by  tearing  pieces  of  wood 
into  thin  strips  like  shavings.  The  other  room, 
where  Jhey  dry  their  fur  and  eat  their  food,  has  two 
holes  in  the  floor  which  serve  as  their  front  and  back 
doors;  for  the  beavers  always  enter  their  houses  by 
swimming  under  water  and  coming  up  through  these 
holes  in  the  floor. 

The  little  beavers  can  help  with  the  winter  food 
supply  while  the  father  and  mother  build  the  house. 
They  swim  back  and  forth  with  the  juicy-barked 
pieces  of  aspen  or  willow  in  their  mouths,  making 
long  V-shaped  ripples  in  the  water  behind  them.  If 
there  is  the  slightest  noise,  down  they  go !  If  father 
beaver  should  slap  the  water  with  his  tail  all  the 
beavers  disappear  so  quickly  and  silently  that  it 
seems  almost  like  magic. 


148  ANIMALS  AND   INSECTS 

The  wood  that  is  to  be  used  as  food  is  stored  near 
the  house  under  water,  so  they  can  get  it  even  when 
the  thick  ice  covers  the  pond  and  shuts  the  beaver 
family  away  from  the  world.  With  a  strong  dam 
and  a  strong  house  and  a  frozen-over  pond  they  can 
spend  the  winter  securely  and  keep  warm  and  com- 
fortable. They  deserve  a  comfortable  winter  —  do 
they  not?  —  after  the  hard  work  they  have  done  to 
make  their  home  secure. 

In  the  spring  after  the  ice  has  gone  they  often  go 
to  visit  other  beaver  families  in  other  ponds,  but 
when  July  comes  they  hurry  home  to  make  every- 
thing strong  again  for  the  winter.  Each  little  leak 
in  the  dam  is  patched  and  mended,  and  the  house  is 
newly  plastered  with  mud  and  more  wood  is  gathered 
for  the  next  winter's  food. 

After  some  years  the  pond  fills  up  and  the  beavers 
are  obliged  to  leave  that  home  and  make  another, 
for  where  the  pond  was  is  now  a  broad,  flat  meadow. 
The  beavers  have  turned  a  mountain  valley  into  a 
fertile  field  where  cattle  can  graze  and  where  men 
can  plant  grain. 

St.  Paul  says,  ''No  man  liveth  to  himself."  That 
means  that  we  cannot  do  things  without  other  peo- 
ple being  helped  or  troubled  by  them.  It  is  just  as 
true  with  the  animals.  Their  work  helps  more  than 
just  themselves.  Our  little  brother,  the  beaver,  is 
not  only  making  a  home  for  himself  when  he  works  so 
hard  and  skillfully  at  his  building,  he  is  doing  his 
part  toward  perfecting  God's  plans  for  the  up- 
building of  the  earth's  surface. 


PART  III 


The  Earth  Made  Ready 
for  Man 


LESSONS   18-29 


Before  beginning  and  without  an  end, 

As  space  eternal,  and  as  surety  sure, 

Is  fixed  a  Power  divine  which  moves  to  good, 

Only  its  laws  endure. 
It  maketh  and  unmaketh,  mending  all; 
What  it  hath  wrought  is  better  than  hath  been ; 
Slow  grows  the  splendid  pattern  that  it  plans 

Its  wistful  hands  between. 

Sir  Edwin  Arnold 


LESSON   18 
AS   IT  WAS   IN  THE  BEGINNING 

MEMORY  VERSE 

In  the  beginning  God  created  the  heavens  and  the  earth.  And 
the  earth  was  waste  and  void;  and  darkness  was  upon  the  face  of 
the  deep:  and  the  Spii-it  of  God  moved  upon  the  face  of  the  waters. 

Gen.  1:1,  2. 

The  Purpose 

The  Lessons  18  to  29,  inclusive,  tell  of  the  forces  that 
have  made  our  planet  the  wonderful  world  we  know, 
and  that  are  still  at  work,  alike  in  organic  and  in  inorganic 
nature,  perfecting  what  has  already  been  done.  The 
purpose  throughout  is  to  show  not  only  th-at  there  is 
change  and  growth,  but  that  these  are  indications  of 
that  great  watchful  love  and  care  which  has  so  far  been 
present  and  is  still  carrying  creation  on  to  even  greater 
perfection. 

The  pupils  should  learn,  as  these  lessons  of  beginnings 
are  taught,  that  the  same  forces  are  still  at  work,  that 
the  Spirit  of  God  still  moves  upon  the  waters.  Then  to 
his  Bible  verse  which  tells  him  what  happened  ''in  the 
beginning"  he  will  learn  to  add:  ''From  everlasting  to 
everlasting  God  creates  the  heavens  and  the  earth." 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

No  attempt  has  been  made  in  this  lesson  to  account 
for  the  actual  beginning  of  our  planet.  For  our  purpose 
the  story  may  well  begin  after  its  position  in  the  solar 
system  has  been  established. 

1.51 


152     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

This  first  lesson  has  been  told  as  simply  as  possible. 
Frequent  appeals  are  made  to  the  children's  imagination- 
A  vivid  imagination  in  the  teacher,  together  with  an  en- 
thusiastic manner,  as  if  telling  a  fairy  tale,  will  be  a 
great  help.  It  would  be  advisable  also  for  the  teacher 
to  have  in  the  class  a  small  globe.  If  the  children  can  be 
helped  to  form  vivid  mental  pictures  of  the  world,  the 
fog,  the  clouds,  the  rain  and  the  great  universal  ocean, 
these  lessons  about  the  beginning  should  not  lack  interest 
for  them. 

The  teacher  should  read  carefully  all  the  lessons  in  this 
section  (18  to  29,  inclusive)  before  trying  to  teach  this  one. 
If  the  mind  has  not  grasped  the  picture  of  the  changing 
world  as  a  whole,  one  cannot  so  well  teach  it  in  part. 

For  further  study  the  teacher  is  referred  to  Brigham's 
Text  Book  of  Geology,  D.  Appleton  &  Co. 

OPENING   TALK 

We  have  been  studying  about  that  part  of  our  world 
which  is  close  to  us  so  that  we  can  see  it,  —  the  clouds, 
the  trees  and  shrubs,  grasses  and  ferns,  seeds  and  flowers; 
then  about  the  animals  that  live  upon  the  earth  with 
us.  Now  we  are  going  to  think  back,  ages  and  ages,  and 
try  to  see  our  world  as  it  was  in  the  beginning.  Our 
Bible  opens  with  words  written  about  that  beginning  by 
people  who  lived  very  long  ago.  In  its  very  first  words  it 
tells  us  such  a  wonderful  truth  that  we  must  be  sure  never 
to  forget  it.  I  will  read  it  to  you,  and  then  you  may  repeat 
it  together.  (Read  and  repeat  the  memory  verse  impres- 
sively and  reverently.) 

Now  we  will  start  with  something  that  you  have  seen, 
something  you  know  about,  which  will  help  you  under- 
stand our  world  as  it  was  in  the  beginning. 


AS   IT   WAS   IN   THE  BEGINNING 

Did  you  ever  watch  men  at  work  building  a  new 
house?  You  remember  how  the  ground  about  the 
house  looks  while  the  building  is  going  on.  And 
after  everything  is  finished  and  the  house  is  ready 
to  be  lived  in,  how  does  the  ground  look  then? 

What  have  the  workmen  done  to  make  that 
ground  so  even  and  so  smooth  where  it  was  so  rough 
before?  Perhaps  you  may  have  stood  and  watched 
them  when  they  cut  away  the  rough  places  and 
filled  in  the  hollows. 

Did  you  ever  wonder  what  the  place  looked  like 
before  your  house  was  built  there  or  before  any 
of  the  houses  were  built  that  make  up  the  city  in 
which  you  live? 

Do  you  suppose  there  were  hills  and  valleys  there, 
or  was  it  all  flat  and  even  before  the  streets  were 
made  and  the  houses  built?  Was  there  a  great  forest 
covering  the  place  long,  long  ago,  or  was  it  an  open 
plain  where  the  wind  swept  over  the  grass  and  the 
clouds  played  at  hide  and  seek  with  their  shadows 
through  all  the  long  August  days? 

When  a  new  street  is  laid  out  and  rows  of  houses 
are  built  on  either  s^ide,  the  land  covered  by  the 
street  and  the  houses  does  not  have  the  same  sur- 
face that  it  did  before  anything  was  built  there.  For 
the  people  who  do  this  work  try  to  have  everything 

153 


154     THE   EARTH   MADE  READY   FOR  MAN 

as  level  as  possible.  So  they  cut  down  the  rising 
ground  and  fill  up  the  hollow  places  and  then  the 
houses  are  built  to  stand  in  long  even  rows. 

It  is  so  when  people  make  a  city.  We  know,  for 
example,  something  about  what  Boston  looked  like 
long  ago  before  it  became  a  city.  When  the  Puri- 
tans came,  there  were  three  high  hills  so  prominent 
that  the  first  settlers  called  the  place  Tri-mountain, 
meaning  ''Three  Hills." 

Where  are  those  three  hills  now?  Two  of  them 
have  been  cut  down  so  low  that  you  could  scarcely 
guess  that  they  had  ever  been  there.  Beacon  Hill, 
which  is  left,  is  very  much  lower  than  it  was,  and 
the  Common,  which  was  a  valley  sloping  quickly 
down  to  the  water's  edge,  has  been  filled  in  until 
the  whole  slope  is  very  much  less  steep  than  it  was. 
This  is  what  men  do  to  their  cities  because  it  is 
easier  to  live  and  work  where  the  ground  is  fairly 
level. 

But  how  about  the  world  itself?  Did  you  think 
that  the  open  country,  the  fields,  the  hills  and  the 
brooks,  have  always  looked  as  they  do  now?  No, 
indeed!  There  was  not  always  a  meadow  where 
the  brook  now  winds  its  way,  nor  has  the  water  in 
the  brook  always  meandered  as  it  does  to-day.  The 
broad,  open  fields  have  not  always  looked  as  they 
do  now,  nor  has  the  hillside  always  been  gently 
sloping.  For  nature  herself  has  been  doing  to  the 
whole  surface  of  the  earth,  ever  since  the  world 
began,  just  what  men  have  been  trying  to  do  to 
those  places  where  they  build  their  cities. 

Nature,  —  that   means   everything   in   the  world 


AS   IT   WAS   IX   THE   BEGINNING         155 

working  together  according  to  God's  will.  Every- 
thing working  together!  \"\Tiat  a  wonderful  story  it 
makes.  Would  you  like  to  hear  the  story?  Would 
you  like  to  think  away  back  to  ''once  upon  a  time" 
and  learn  what  the  world  was  like  before  nature 
had  made  it  as  we  see  it  to-day? 

First,  then,  try  to  think  how  everything  looks  on 
a  very  foggy  day,  when  the  fog  is  so  heavy  that  the 
sun  is  quite  hidden  and  everything  seems  enveloped 
in  a  thick  cloud. 

There  was  a  time,  long  ages  ago,  when  there  was 
a  blanket  of  fog  and  mist  surrounding  the  world,  so 
thick  that  the  sun  was  never  able  to  shine  through 
it.  The  earth  was  hot  then,  —  very  hot.  There  was 
never  any  winter,  never  any  frost  or  snow  or  wind. 
There  was  no  rain  even,  but  just  that  heavy  fog 
resting  like  a  thick  blanket  upon  the  surface  of  the 
earth. 

After  a  long,  long  time  the  world  began  to  get 
cooler.  Then  the  fog  did  not  rest  quite  so  closely 
or  quite  so  heavily  upon  it.  Once  in  a  while  the 
faintest  glimmer  of  sunlight  made  its  way  through 
the  mist.  But  almost  always  it  rained,  —  a  gentle, 
soft,  oozy  rain,  as  if  the  fog  blanket  were  a  sponge 
too  full  of  water.    This  water  fell  on  the  hot  earth. 

Have  you  ever  seen  water  fall  upon  a  hot  stove? 
As  soon  as  the  water  touched  the  hot  surface  it 
disappeared  so  quickly  in  steam  that  there  was  not  a 
drop  of  water  left.  But  if  the  stove  had  been  cold  the 
water  which  fell  upon  it  would  have  remained  water, 
and  perhaps  some  of  it  would  have  run  off  upon  the 
floor,  leaving  the  stove  wet  where  it  had  been. 


loG     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

Now  the  water  which  escapes  so  quickly  from  the 
hot  stove  and  disappears  in  the  form  of  steam  is  not 
lost.  It  is  held  invisible  in  the  air  if  the  room  is 
very  warm,  but  where  it  touches  anything  cold  it 
changes  back  to  drops  of  water  again. 

Try,  now,  to  imagine  the  hot  earth,  somewhat 
the  shape  of  an  orange,  surrounded  by  the  thick 
blanket  of  steaming  fog,  from  which  rain  at  last 
began  to  fall.  The  water  thus  falling  would  go  hiss- 
ing back  into  steam  almost  before  it  reached  the 
earth's  surface.  Next,  think  of  the  earth  as  coohng 
gradually,  until  the  drops  of  water  which  fell  re- 
mained longer  and  longer  upon  its  surface  without 
going  back  into  steam,  until  at  last  the  earth  became 
so  cool  that  the  water  that  fell  upon  it  became  great 
ponds  and  lakes. 

How  it  rained  in  those  days!  It  rained  so  hard 
and  so  long  that  the  surface  of  the  earth  became  all 
covered  with  water.  There  was  one  universal 
ocean  with  no  land  anywhere  in  sight. 

For  long,  long  ages  this  vast,  encircling  ocean 
covered  the  earth.  Nothing  could  be  seen  but  water 
and  clouds  and  rain.  But  after  those  long,  long  ages 
had  passed  some  land  began  to  show  above  the 
water. 

All  this  time  there  was  nothing  living  upon  the 
world,  for  it  was  not  ready  to  nourish  any  form  of 
life.  The  air  then  was  heavy  and  thick:  no  one 
could  have  breathed  it.  The  water  was  still  warm 
and  so  full  of  mineral  matter  that  we  could  not  have 
lived  at  all  if  we  had  been  obliged  to  drink  it.  The 
rocks,   too,  were  strange  rocks,  with  the  minerals 


AS   IT   WAS   IN   THE  BEGINNING         157 

which  composed  them  arranged  in  such  a  way  that 
they  would  not  have  been  so  useful  to  us  as  the 
rocks  we  have  now. 

But  God  was  getting  the  world  ready  for  us  to 
live  upon,  and  the  constant  rain  was  helping  Him,  as 
you  shall  hear  in  another  story. 

When  the  soUd  earth  began  to  rise  above  the  sur- 
face of  the  vast,  surging  ocean  it  began  to  look  like 
a  world.  The  rocks  were  like  some  that  help  to 
make  our  own  country.  In  fact  it  was  our  own  coun- 
try of  North  America  that  first  showed  itself  above 
the  encircling  waters. 

So  the  world,  our  world  as  we  find  it  now,  was  be- 
ginning to  grow,  and,  although  there  was  nothing 
alive  anywhere  even  yet  over  its  whole  surface,  the 
Spirit  of  God  was  moving  over  it.  That  Spirit  was 
there  then,  just  as  it  is  here  now.  In  obedience  to 
His  thought  and  His  laws  the  world  changed  and 
grew  until  it  was  ready  for  life  to  appear. 

Always  from  the  beginning  God  has  been  with 
this  wonderful  world  of  ours.  His  Spirit  it  was  that 
moved  over  and  through  and  in  it.  He  is  with  the 
world  now,  He  has  been  with  the  world  since  its  be- 
ginning, and  He  will  be  with  the  world  forever. 


LESSON    19 
THE  WORK   OF  THE  RAIN 

MEMORY   VERSE 

Behold,  God  is  great,  .  .  . 

For  he  draweth  up  the  drops  of  water, 

Which  distil  in  rain  from  the  vapor  thereof. 

Job  36:26,  27  (R.  V.,  Margin.) 

The  Purpose 

This  lesson,  which  carries  on  the  story  of  the  change 
and  gro^vth  of  our  planet,  is  intended  to  show  the  enor- 
mous factor  that  rain-water  has  been,  and  still  is,  in  shap- 
ing the  surface  of  the  earth. 

The  lesson  to  be  taught  is  that  great  things  can  be 
accomplished  by  continuous  effort  made  according  to 
God's  law.  All  these  lessons  should  tend  to  increase  the 
child's  reverence  for  the  earth  on  which  he  dwells  and  for 
its  Creator.  The  memory  verse  will  deepen  the  religious 
impression. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

The  story  of  the  rain-drops  can  be  made  a  most  in- 
teresting one  to  the  children  because  of  the  fairy-like 
quality  that  can  be  given  to  it. 

Vividness  in  telling  of  the  continuous  journey  and  the 
changes  in  form  wnll  claim  the  interest  of  the  children 
and  give  them  a  mental  picture  that  they  will  not  forget . 

A  lesson  on  habit  should  be  drawn  from  the  channels 
which  the  rain-water  follows  so   easily  after  they  are 

158 


THE   WORK   OF*  THE   RAIN  159 

once  made.  A  good  habit  formed  is  as  easy  to  follow  as  it 
is  for  the  water  to  follow  the  channel  it  has  cut.  Why  not 
form  good  habits,  then,  instead  of  bad  ones? 

Hand  Work 

The  children  are  to  watch  for  some  cutting-work  done 
by  the  rain  and  then  write  the  account  of  it  on  the  leaflet. 

They  are  to  fill  the  spaces  in  the  sentences  at  the  end 
of  the  blank  space. 

Assign  for  home  reading  the  Bible  passage  about  the 
weather.  Matt.  16:  1-3. 

OPENING   TALK 

Can  you  shut  your  eyes  and  see  again  the  picture  of 
our  world  as  we  tried  to  see  it  last  Sunday?  Tell  me  what 
you  can  see.  Is  it  like  this?  At  first,  the  round  world, 
so  covered  by  a  thick  blanket  of  fog  that  not  a  single  ray 
of  the  sun  could  ever  shine  through  upon  its  surface. 
Then,  a  globe  covered  with  one  vast  surging  ocean  except 
for  an  island  which  shows  above  the  water,  and,  sur- 
rounding the  globe,  thick  clouds  from  which  the  rain  fell 
continuously. 

Now  we  want  to  know  what  it  was  that  this  falling 
rain  did  for  our  world. 


THE    WORK   OF  THE  RAIN 

Now  although  the  rain  as  it  fell  upon  the  surface 
of  the  cooling  world  did  not  turn  into  steam  and  rise 
again  into  the  enveloping  fog,  yet  the  water  did  not 
remain  long  where  it  fell.  For  water  is  always  mov- 
ing and  always  changing  because  of  the  forces  that 
act  upon  it.    That  is  its  law. 

Think  about  the  water  that  you  see  falling  as  rain. 
Does  it  remain  in  one  place  very  long?  Down  it 
comes,  away  it  runs  in  a  hundred  little  rills  to  the 
brooks;  the  brooks  hurry  it  off  to  the  river,  where  it 
flows  a  broad,  silent  stream  to  the  ocean.  Yet  even 
in  the  restless  ocean  it  does  not  remain  long,  for  the 
sun  coaxes  it  away. 

The  sun  beams  are  warm;  you  know  yourself  how 
warm  they  are.  When  they  rest  upon  the  water 
those  drops  that  are  moving  to  and  fro  upon  the  sur- 
face of  the  ocean  are  taken  up  into  the  air  that  has 
been  warmed  by  the  sunbeams,  and  become  invisible. 

Did  you  ever  watch  the  sidewalks  dry  off  when 
the  sun  came  out  bright  and  hot  after  a  summer 
shower?  Did  you  ever  wonder  where  the  water  went 
that  dried  up  so  quickly?  It  was  going  up  unseen 
with  the  sunbeams,  just  as  if  it  had  put  on  an  invisible 
cap  and  slipped  away  straight  up  those  long,  golden 
ladders.  You  and  I  cannot  become  invisible,  but 
drops  of  water  can  when  the  sun  touches  them  with 

160 


THE   WORK   OF   THE   RAIN  161 

its  long,  golden  rays.  We  call  those  invisible  drops 
''vapor/'  and  when  water  dries  away  from  any  sur- 
face we  say  that  it  ''evaporates." 

So  the  drops  on  the  surfaces  of  the  ocean  and  the 
ponds  and  rivers  evaporate.  They  change  into 
vapor  and,  leaving  their  companion  drops,  rise  up 
into  the  air.  They  rise  until  they  reach  a  place  where 
they  can  stay  comfortably  and  where  many  other 
drops  in  the  form  of  vapor  join  them.  We  do  not  see 
them  as  they  ascend,  but  when  they  stop  and  collect 
in  one  mass  we  can  see  them. 

Who  can  tell  what  we  call  those  masses  of  vapor- 
ized water-drops  that  are  floating  about  in  the  sky? 
You  have  guessed  it.     They  are  clouds. 

Did  you  know  that  those  strange  and  beautiful 
clouds  which  you  have  watched  and  of  which  you 
have  learned  the  names  were  formed  in  this  way? 
Did  you  think  that  they  were  storehouses  full  of  tiny 
beads  of  water  which  had  risen  unseen  from  the  sur- 
face of  the  earth  and  ocean  at  the  bidding  of  the  sun? 

Ah!  would  we  not  love  to  see  those  invisible  drops 
as  they  rise  from  the  earth  and  ocean  and  make  their 
way  up,  up  on  those  long,  golden  ladders  into  the 
sky?  Sometimes  when  the  sun  is  setting  behind  dark 
clouds  we  can  see  the  long  rays  of  the  sun  reaching 
down  toward  the  earth.  Some  people  say  when  they 
see  this,  "  Look!  the  sun  is  drawing  water."  But  the 
sun  is  always  drawing  water  up  into  the  air.  Next 
time  you  see  the  long  rays  of  the  setting  sun,  think 
of  the  countless  number  of  invisible  drops  that  are 
traveling  up  those  golden  ladders  into  the  sky. 

Think,  too,  of  the  journeys  those  drops  of  water 


1G2     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

take.  They  are  no  sooner  formed  into  clouds  than 
they  are  driven  about  through  the  air  by  the  wind. 
In  that  journey,  when  they  come  to  a  place  that  is 
colder  than  the  air  in  which  they  came  to  rest,  it  is 
as  if  the  clouds  were  squeezed  as  you  squeeze  a  wet 
sponge  in  your  hand,  for  the  colder  air  congeals  the 
beads  of  vapor  into  drops  of  water  again,  and  rain 
falls  from  the  clouds.  Sometimes  it  is  a  soft,  gentle 
rain  that  only  wets  the  grass  and  leaves  and  flowers. 
Sometimes  it  is  a  driving  rain  which  comes  in  such 
heavy  drops  that  it  races  away  in  streams  and  brooks. 
Sometimes  it  is  snow,  and  sometimes  hail. 

What  an  endless  task  this  seems!  Is  there  any- 
thing on  earth  that  could  tell  us  more  marvelous 
tales  of  travel  and  adventure  than  the  drops  of  rain 
water?  For  water  is  continually  in  motion  and  end- 
lessly at  work.  Water  is  one  of  God's  most  active 
helpers.  Just  picture  to  yourself  its  wonderful  journey. 

Up  into  the  air  it  goes  as  vapor,  keeping  the  air 
soft  and  moist  all  the  while.  Through  the  air  it 
floats  as  clouds  and,  while  it  floats,  it  curtains  off 
some  of  the  sun's  rays  and  keeps  them  from  scorching 
the  earth.  To  the  earth  it  falls  as  rain,  refreshing  the 
plants  as  it  falls  and  nourishing  the  roots  as  it  sinks 
into  the  ground.  To  the  surface  again  it  comes  in 
springs  of  fresh,  clear  water.  And  away  it  flows  in 
brooks  and  rivers  to  join  again  the  vast  ocean,  only  to 
begin  once  more  its  long,  changeful  journey.  Ever 
since  the  beginning,  when  the  heavy,  close-lying  fog 
was  raining  itself  away,  water  has  been  traveling  like 
this.  Only  at  first  there  was  no  land  to  travel  over, 
and  then  for  a  long,  long  time  there  was  nothing  to 


THE   WORK   OF   THE   RAIN  163 

nourish  as  it  fell,  for  nothing  grew  upon  that  first 
rocky  surface. 

But  the  thought  of  God  was  upon  the  world,  and  it 
was  changing  and  growing.  The  peak  of  land  which 
had  first  appeared  grew  larger  and  larger.  Then 
more  land  arose  from  the  sea,  until  in  time  a  part  of 
each  of  the  six  great  continents  that  you  see  pictured 
upon  the  maps  and  the  globe  in  the  schoolroom  had 
emerged  from  the  ocean.  The  rocks  that  make  up 
that  land  looked  more  like  our  rocks,  and  they  were 
getting  ready  for  something  to  grow  upon  them. 

All  this  long,  long  time  while  the  land  was  slowly 
rising  from  that  vast  ocean,  the  rain  water  was  busy 
obeying  God's  law  and  fulfiUing  His  purpose.  For 
the  rain  worked  to  change  the  surface  of  the  earth, 
and  to  make  it  a  better  home  for  the  plants,  the 
animals  and  the  people  that  God  willed  should  live 
upon  it.  The  rain  not  only  blesses  the  things  and  the 
creatures  living  upon  the  earth,  but  it  helps  and  has 
always  helped  to  change  the  solid  ground  and  make 
it  fit  for  them  to  live  upon.  Ever  since  the  first  crust 
of  rocky  land  emerged  from  the  vast,  enveloping 
ocean  even  to  this  time  the  rain  has  worked  in  the 
same  way. 

Can  you  tell  what  the  rain  water  does  to  change 
the  surface  of  the  earth?  Do  you  remember  what  the 
men  did  when  they  laid  out  the  streets  and  finished 
the  ground  around  the  houses?  They  evened  the 
ground  by  cutting  down  the  hills  or  ridges  and  by 
filling  up  the  valleys  and  hollows. 

In  the  same  way  the  rain  water  is  at  work,  cutting 
down  the  hills  and  filling  up  the  valleys.    Persistently 


1G4     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

and  endlessly  it  cuts  down  and  makes  even  the  sur- 
face of  the  earth. 

Have  you  ever  seen,  after  a  hard  rain-storm,  how 
gullies  had  been  worn  in  the  road  where  the  water  ran 
off  into  the  gutter?  Sometimes  the  gullies  are  so  small 
that  you  have  to  look  closely  to  see  them,  but  many 
of  them  are  so  large  that  they  make  deep  cuts  in  the 
side  of  the  road.  Men  come  and  mend  the  road,  but 
unless  they  put  a  hard  surface  upon  it  those  gullies  will 
be  made  again  and  again  whenever  it  rains  very  hard. 

Do  you  know  why?  It  is  because  the  water  is  trying 
to  make  itself  a  channel  so  it  can  flow  away  faster  to 
the  deep  sea,  and  although  many  of  the  drops  sink 
into  the  ground  or  are  taken  back  into  the  sky  while 
on  the  way,  yet  most  of  them  get  to  the  ocean  at  last. 

The  raindrops  seem  so  impatient  to  get  there  that 
they  wait  for  nothing.  They  will  hurry  along  the 
surface  of  the  road  and  run  off  the  side  into  the  gutter. 
More  drops  join  and  follow  the  others,  for  drops  of 
water  like  to  be  together.  It  is  their  nature,  and  they 
cannot  work  well  alone.  These  drops  make  a  con- 
tinuous stream,  trying  to  get  down  from  the  higher 
surface  of  the  road.  They  push  away  the  sand  and 
gravel,  then  the  little  pebbles  that  are  in  their  way, 
until  they  have  cut  a  channel  through  which  they 
can  flow  more  swiftly  and  surely  to  the  brooks  and 
the  rivers  on  lower  ground. 

If  the  road  is  not  mended,  when  the  next  rain- 
storm comes  the  gully  will  be  worn  deeper  until  the 
rain  water  will  have  made  a  permanent  channel  for 
itself,  through  which  in  rainy  weather  it  regularly 
flows  from  the  surface  to  the  gutter  on  its  way  to 


THE   WORK   OF   THE   RAIN  165 

join  the  brook.  The  rain  wears  not  only  one  channel 
but  several.  If  the  road  was  never  mended  it  would 
not  be  very  long,  a  few  years  at  most,  before  the  rain 
water  would  have  worn  off  the  whole  surface  of  the 
street  in  its  hurry  to  get  off  to  a  lower  place. 

It  is  true  that  the  rain  makes  the  higher  ground 
uneven  at  first;  that  is  its  way  of  working,  for  it  can 
only  do  a  Uttle  at  a  time.  All  that  material,  too, 
which  it  has  worn  out  of  the  gullies  must  be  carried 
away  little  by  little.  Even  men  cannot  level  off  a 
hill  all  at  once.  They  cut  into  the  side,  leaving  a  very 
jagged-looking  place  while  they  cart  away  the  loose 
material,  and  that  always  takes  time.  Even  wdth  a 
steam  shovel  working  all  day  with  trains  of  cars  to 
take  away  the  gravel  it  takes  a  long  time  to  cut  down 
a  hill.  Think  of  the  time,  then,  that  it  must  take  the 
rain  water  which  can  only  work  when  it  rains.  For 
besides  cutting  down  the  raised  surface  it  must  take 
away  the  sand  and  pebbles  that  it  loosens. 

Is  it  any  wonder,  then,  that  it  makes  the  higher 
ground  more  uneven  in  its  first  attempt  to  level  it? 
In  time,  if  no  man  interferes,  the  rain  water  will  carry 
away  the  soil  and  pebbles  from  the  higher  places  to 
the  lower  and  leave  the  whole  surface  more  even. 

That  is  what  it  is  doing  to-day.  That  is  what  it  has 
done  for  ages.  That  is  what  it  commenced  to  do  to 
the  peaks  of  land  as  soon  as  they  emerged  from  the 
vast,  enveloping  ocean. 

Over  and  over  again  these  raindrops  do  their  work, 
as  they  have  always  done  it.  And  all  the  while,  as  they 
have  been  fulfilling  God's  law  for  themselves,  they 
have  helped  to  make  our  great  world  more  fit  for  life. 


LESSON   20 

THE    WORK   OF    THE    RAIN:   BROOKS    AND 
RIVERS 


MEMORY   VERSE 

Thou  shalt  keep  the  commandments  of  the  Lord  thy  God,  to 
walk  in  his  ways,  and  to  fear  him.  For  the  Lord  thy  God  bringeth 
thee  into  a  good  land,  a  land  of  brooks  of  water,  of  fountains  and 
springs,  flowing  forth  in  valleys  and  hills. 

Deut.  8:  6,  7. 

The  Purpose 

This  lesson  deals  with  the  tearing-down  and  building-up 
force  of  rain  water  as  it  flows  off  the  earth  in  brooks  and 
rivers.  The  general  action  is  the  same  as  that  described 
in  the  previous  lesson,  except  that  in  this  case  it  is  the 
larger  forces  in  the  brooks  and  rivers  that  are  at  work. 

The  commandments  of  the  Lord  for  our  lives  are  as 
definite  and  sure  as  those  which  direct  the  forces  of  the 
rain.  Our  task  is  to  find  out  the  law  of  God  as  it  relates 
to  our  owm  lives,  that  we  may  do  it. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

A  map  of  a  water  system  like  that  of  the  Mississippi 
or  the  St.  Lawrence  will  help  the  pupils  to  understand 
the  way  brooks  and  small  streams  join  to  make  a  great 
river.  It  should  be  used  after,  not  before,  the  illustra- 
tion of  the  fingers  and  the  arm. 

The  teacher  should  have  as  specimens  to  show  to  the 
children  an  angular  fragment  of  rock  and  a  waterworn 

1603 


BROOKS  AND   RIVERS  167 

pebble,  and  should  make  a  special  lesson  from  them  as  to 
the  way  nature  rounds  off  sharp  corners.  Anything  in 
us  that  hurts  those  about  us  is  an  angular  corner  which 
life  seeks  to  wear  down  and  make  smooth.  What  is  not 
corrected  when  we  are  young  the  world  will  correct  in  us 
later,  and  that  causes  us  more  pain. 

The  question  given  in  the  opening  talk  should  be  used 
in  this  form  only  if  there  has  been  opportunity  for  such 
observation  during  the  week. 

Hand  Work 

The  children  should  be  asked  to  draw  a  river  system 
upon  the  last  page  of  the  leaflet. 

OPENING    TALK 

Have  you  ever  noticed  the  little  gullies  cut  in  the  road 
by  the  rain  water?  Can  you  think  what  would  happen 
if  these  kept  getting  larger  and  deeper  as  more  water 
ran  through  them?  That  does  happen  in  many  parts  of 
our  earth,  and  you  shall  hear  to-day  more  of  the  story  of 
what  the  rain  has  done  to  our  world. 


THE  WORK  OF  THE  RAIN :  BROOKS  AND  RIVERS 

Just  as  you  see  the  rain  water  at  work  now  upon 
the  side  of  a  road  or  on  a  gravel  walk  or  any  other 
surface  that  is  not  protected,  so  it  began  those  long, 
long  ages  ago  to  work  upon  the  crests  of  those  rocky 
islands  that  have  become  the  six  great  continents 
upon  which  people  live. 

Slowly  at  first  it  did  this,  very,  very  slowly,  be- 
cause there  w^as  nothing  to  work  upon  but  rock. 
No  gullies  can  be  made  in  a  single  rain-storm  on  a 
surface  of  solid  rock.  How  many,  many  years  the 
rain  must  have  fallen  upon  that  rocky  surface  before 
it  was  able  to  wear  the  smallest  depression  in  it! 
But  in  time  even  rock  gives  way  to  water,  and 
finally  those  patient  raindrops  had  their  reward. 
The  smallest  depressions  appeared.  These  became 
grooves,  then  were  worn  into  channels.  Thus,  after 
years  and  years  there  were  brooks  flowdng  to  the 
ocean  in  deep  beds  that  they  had  hollowed  out  for 
themselves  from  the  solid  rock. 

It  seems  almost  impossible,  does  it  not?  But 
since  God  gave  the  rain  water  its  work  to  do  and  its 
law  to  follow,  would  He  not  always  give  it  power  to 
do  that  work?  Yet  it  seems  as  if  nothing  in  all  the 
world  had  a  harder  task  than  the  rain  water,  for  the 
wearing  away  of  the  hard  rocks  was  not  all  it  had 
to  do.     The  raindrops  must  carry  along  with  them 

168 


BROOKS  AND   RIVERS  169 

in  their  journey  to  the  sea  the  small  particles,  the 
pebbles  and  the  larger  rocks  that  they  had  worn 
away  or  broken  off. 

It  was  not  far  to  the  sea  at  first,  and  the  rain 
water  ran  merrily  off  the  shoulders  of  the  rocks  into 
the  surrounding  ocean  much  the  way  water  rolls 
off  your  umbrella.  It  was  working  hard,  however, 
to  take  some  little  particles  of  rock  with  it,  and 
these,  washed  about  by  the  flowing  water,  helped 
it  very  much  in  wearing  its  channel. 

As  the  land  rose,  and  there  was  more  surface 
for  the  rain  to  fall  upon,  the  water  gathered  into 
these  partly  worn  channels,  making  them  deeper  and 
deeper.  Into  them  it  would  wash  all  the  particles 
of  rock  which  had  been  worn  away  or  broken  off, 
while  along  the  bed  of  the  channel  it  would  push 
these  rocks  as  it  hurried  on  its  way  to  the  sea.  All 
along  the  way  the  bits  of  rock  would  jostle  and 
bump  against  each  other,  wearing  down  the  bed  of 
the  brook  and  wearing  off  their  own  sharp  corners. 
When  they  reached  the  sea  they  were  no  longer 
sharp  and  angular  bits  of  rock,  but  smoothly  rounded 
pebbles  like  those  you  find  on  the  beaches  to-day. 

When  you  have  played  with  those  smooth,  round 
pebbles  on  the  seashore,  did  you  ever  think  where 
they  came  from,  and  what  made  them  so  smooth  and 
round?  Did  you  suppose  that  they  were  always  so? 
Oh,  no.  Once  those  pebbles  were  part  of  a  great, 
solid  rock.  Perhaps  some  of  them  belonged  to  the 
cliffs  farther  off  along  the  shore  where  the  watei- 
pounds  and  foams  all  day  and  all  night.  Perhaps 
some  of  them  came  a  long  distance,  brought  by  a 


170     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

river  many  years  ago  from  the  place  where  the  rushing 
mountain  brook  tore  them  away  from  their  parent 
ledge. 

In  that  long-ago  time,  just  as  now,  not  all  of  the 
pebbles  in  the  rushing  brooks  reached  the  sea. 
Some  were  worn  down  almost  to  powder,  like  the 
sand  and  clay  you  play  with  on  the  beach  or  wade 
into  at  low  tide.  Some  were  left  all  along  the  way 
wherever  the  brooks  or  rivers  flowed  through  a  place 
low  enough  to  be  flooded  over  when  the  water  was 
high;  for  after  a  hard  rain  the  brooks  did  then  ex- 
actly as  they  do  now.  They  overflowed  on  the  lower 
parts  of  their  course  and  spread  out  in  broad  sheets 
of  water  where  no  water  had  been  before.  Then 
presently,  when  the  rain  was  over,  the  waters  sub- 
sided and  flowed  away  in  the  regular  brook  channel. 
But  although  the  water  flowed  away  it  did  not  leave 
the  low  land  just  as  it  was  before,  for  there  remained 
on  its  surface  some  of  the  gravel  and  sand  that  the 
stream  was  trying  to  carry  away  with  it.  This 
helped  to  fill  up  the  valley.  After  years  and  years 
of  being  flooded  the  valley  would  be  changed  from 
a  deep  hollow  into  a  more  even  plain. 

The  hollows  were  filled  with  the  finely  worn 
pieces  of  rock  where  roots  could  feel  their  way  and 
plants  could  grow  when  the  time  was  right.  That  is 
the  way  many  of  our  meadows  came  to  be  as  they 
are. 

Now  all  along  throughout  the  ages  the  streams 
have  worked  in  the  same  way.  If  you  could  watch 
a  rushing  mountain  brook  you  would  see  it  doing 
the  same  thing  now.    Rapidh^  it  pushes  along  the  bits 


BROOKS  AND   RIVERS  171 

of  rock  that  are  washed  into  it,  wearing  the  rocks 
smaller  while  it  wears  its  own  bed  deeper  and  deeper. 

Sometimes  when  there  is  a  very  hard  storm  and 
the  brooks  and  streams  are  full  of  rushing  water, 
large  rocks  will  be  carried  along  for  a  great  distance, 
and  when  the  force  of  the  water  has  lessened,  the 
rocks  will  be  left  in  the  strangest  places.  We  call  it 
a  flood  when  the  water  of  a  stream  escapes  from  its 
banks  and  flows  over  the  countr}^,  taking  with  it 
whatever  lies  in  its  path.  You  could  hardly  believe 
water  could  be  so  fierce  and  strong  as  it  is  when  in 
flood. 

It  is  not  usually  so  strong  as  that,  but  in  the  moun- 
tain brooks,  where  the  water  runs  very  swiftly,  it  is 
always  strong.  If  it  were  not  so  it  would  never  be 
able  to  carry  the  rocks  and  pebbles  down  into  the 
valley  and  to  the  river. 

It  takes  many  brooks  to  make  a  river.  From  the 
higher  land  and  from  the  mountains  the  brooks 
come  rushing  and  tumbling  down  into  the  valleys, 
then  out  of  the  valleys  flow  the  rivers.  All  alon^  on 
their  way  to  the  sea  the  rivers  are  joined  by  brooks 
and  streams  and  by  other  rivers.  That  is  why  the 
river  grows  larger  and  deeper  as  it  flows  ever  on- 
ward to  its  home  in  the  ocean. 

Suppose  you  hold  up  your  hand  with  the  fingers 
outspread,  and  make  believe  that  each  one  of  your 
fingers  and  your  thumb  is  a  brook  flowing  down 
off  the  mountain  into  a  broad  valley.  That  valley 
you  can  imagine  the  palm  of  your  hand  to  be.  Then 
out  of  the  valley  would  flow  a  river  which  would 
grow  larger  and  broader  as  it  went  to  join  the  sea, 


172     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR   MAN 

as  your  arm  grows  larger  where  it  meets  your  body 
at  the  shoulder. 

Now  suppose  you  shut  your  eyes  and  try  to  see, 
not  your  hand  and  arm,  but  a  long  river  flowing  to 
the  sea,  ever  growing  l^roader  and  deepei*  as  it  flows 
along  while  it  is  fed  continually  by  those  swift 
mountain  brooks. 

Long,  long  ago,  when  the  dry  land  was  slowly 
emerging  from  the  ocean,  the  streams  went  rushing 
to  the  sea  almost  as  swiftly  as  the  brooks  rush  off 
the  mountains  now,  and  the  fragments  which  they 
were  carrying  along  with  them  cut  like  a  saw,  deep 
into  the  hard  rock  of  their  beds.  Just  as  jewelers 
cut  and  polish  diamonds  with  diamond  chips  and 
diamond  dust,  the  brooks  and  young  rivers  use  the 
fragments  they  take  away  from  the  rocks  to  cut 
into  and  wear  away  the  rock  over  which  they 
flow. 

It  takes  a  long,  long  time.  So  many,  many  years 
of  rain;  so  many,  many  years  of  water  flowing  off 
into*  brooks  and  then  into  rivers;  so  many,  many 
years  of  the  grinding  and  wearing  of  fragments! 
But  those  brooks  and  rivers  have  made  over  the 
surface  of  the  earth.  Things  could  grow  upon  it 
then;  just  the  tiniest  bits  of  lichen  at  first  clinging  to 
the  rocks,  then  mosses  and  ferns,  then  trees,  and  at 
last  animals,  as  you  shall  hear  later. 

During  all  this  time  the  land  was  rising  from  the 
sea.  How  it  did  this  is  God's  own  secret.  The 
rain  water  with  the  brooks  and  rivers  helped  to  make 
more  land,  too,  by  depositing  at  the  shore  and  in  the 
ocean  the  great  amount  of  sand  and  clay  they  car- 


BROOKS   AND   RIVERS  173 

ried  down  from  the  heights.  It  all  made  great 
shelving  beaches  then,  just  as  it  does  now. 

Think  of  the  patient  working  of  these  brooks  and 
rivers.  Think  of  the  ages  and  ages  that  they  have 
worked  to  make  the  world  ready  for  life. 

Even  now  they  are  still  busy  cutting  down  our 
mountains  and  filling  up  our  valleys,  although  to 
us  the  world  seems  quite  finished.  They  are  God's 
helpers,  as  are  we.  Unless  the  raindrops  and  the 
brooks  and  the  rivers  had  done  God's  work  in  those 
long-ago  days,  the  earth  would  not  have  been  made 
ready  for  us  to  live  upon;  and  the  work  they  do  now 
keeps  it  fit  for  life. 


LESSON   21 
SNOW,   ICE  AND   FROST 

MEMORY   VERSE 

He  giveth  snow  like  wool; 

He  scattereth  the  hoar-frost  like  ashes. 

Ps.  147:  16. 

The  Purpose 

The  different  forms  under  which  rain  water  works  and 
the  beauty  of  those  forms  is  the  subject  of  this  lesson. 
The  purpose  is  to  teach  the  child  to  view  the  w^orld  with 
reverence.  The  beauty  of  the  tiny  snowflake,  whenever 
seen,  and  the  wonder  it  arouses,  should  bring  God  very 
near  to  the  heart  of  the  child. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

This  lesson  gives  the  teacher  an  opportunity  to  call 
attention  to  the  beauty  and  perfection  in  form  of  many 
of  God's  creations  which  are  often  umioticed.  The  sub- 
ject of  the  snowflakes  ma}^  impress  many  lessons  besides 
reverence,  among  them  the  obvious  one  of  the  results 
accomplished  by  the  combined  strength  of  seemingly 
weak  things. 

Hand  Work 

Ask  to  see  the  work  on  the  last  leaflet  which  was  as- 
signed as  home  work. 

The  passage  on  the  last  page  of  the  leaflet  is  to  be 

174 


SNOW,   ICE  AND   FROST  175 

completed  by  filling  the  blank  spaces  with  the  right 
words.  This  work  makes  an  excellent  test  of  the  pupil's 
grasp  of  the  lesson  story. 


OPENING   TALK 

Question  the  pupils  as  to  what  happens  to  the  rain  in 
winter.  Will  they  mention  all  the  forms  named  in  the 
title  of  this  lesson? 

Review^  rapidly  the  work  of  the  rain  as  given  in  the 
last  two  lessons,  in  preparation  for  this  story  of  its  work 
in  the  form  of  snow,  ice  and  frost. 


SNOW,   ICE  AND   FROST 

There  are  others  of  God's  helpers  that  work  with 
the  rain-water  in  changing  over  the  earth's  surface. 
The  wind  helps.  It  drives  the  rain  against  the  rocks 
and  upon  the  ground,  so  that  it  strikes  very  much 
harder  than  it  could  by  itself. 

Did  you  ever  come  home  from  school  when  the 
wind  drove  the  rain  against  you  so  hard  that  it  went 
through  your  coat,  and  even  spattered  through  yoiu* 
umbrella?  Nothing  can  seem  to  keep  dry  in  a  driving 
rain.  It  gets  under  the  shingles  on  our  roofs,  it  works 
under  the  window  sills,  and  it  turns  over  and  soaks 
the  under  side  of  the  leaves,  those  poor  leaves  that 
cannot  breathe  if  the  little  pores  upon  the  under  side 
are  full  of  water.  So  when  the  wind  dashes  the  rain 
against  the  side  of  a  cliff  it  can  wear  away  that  cliff 
much  faster  than  if  it  fell  gently  upon  it. 

The  wind  not  only  drives  the  rain,  but  it  drives 
sand  also.  In  the  great  Desert  of  Sahara  and  the 
Arabian  desert  the  wind  wears  rocks  away  very  fast 
by  blowing  sand  against  them.  At  the  seashore  in 
a  terrible  storm  the  wind  blows  the  sand  so  hard 
against  a  rock  or  cliff  that  it  cuts  away  the  surface 
and  polishes  it  smooth. 

If  you  should  ever  go  to  Provincetown  and  High- 
land Light  on  Cape  Cod,  you  should  look  carefully 
at  the  great  cliffs  under  the  lighthouse,  and  see  how 

176 


SNOW,   ICE  AND   FROST  177 

the  wind  has  cut  and  poUshed  the  hard  pebbles  held 
fast  in  the  clay  of  which  the  cliff  is  made.  Then  you 
will  know  how  terrible  the  force  of  the  wind-driven 
sand  must  have  been. 

Many  things  we  learn  to  do  in  a  better  way  by 
watching  nature  and  seeing  how  she  works.  A  man 
once  noticed  the  force  with  which  the  wind  drove 
sand  against  a  cliff,  and  he  thought  about  it  so  much 
that  he  invented  a  new  way  to  decorate  glass.  It  is 
called  engraving  glass  with  a  sand-blast.  There  is  a 
pattern  cut  as  you  cut  your  pattern  for  stencil-work. 
Then  the  glass,  excepting  where  the  pattern  is  to 
be,  is  covered  with  wax,  and  a  blast  of  air  full  of  fine 
sand  is  blown  against  it.  Wherever  the  sand  touches 
the  glass  the  surface  is  made  rough  and  white,  not 
transparent  as  it  was  before. 

The  wind  helps,  also,  in  blowing  about  the  finer 
particles  of  sand  and  dust  which  have  been  worn 
from  the  rocks.  You  have  already  learned  how  it 
piles  up  heaps  of  sand  along  the  shore  and  moves 
them  almost  as  if  they  were  marching.  It  does  the 
same  thing  in  the  desert. 

The  rain  has  another  helper  in  the  cracks  or  fissures 
in  the  rocks  themselves.  For  the  rain  is  caught  and 
held  in  these  cracks ;  then  comes  the  frost  and  freezes 
the  water.  You  know  that  water  frozen  into  ice  takes 
up  more  room  than  it  does  as  water.  That  is  why 
tumblers  are  broken  when  water  freezes  solid  in  them. 
Ice  breaks  rock  m  the  same  way,  making  the  fissure 
wider  and  deeper  and  splitting  off  many  pieces  from 
its  sides.  At  the  end  of  the  winter  you  will  often  find 
these  fragments  of  rock  lying  in  a  heap  at  the  base 
of  a  ledge. 


178     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

After  a  time  soil  collects  in  these  fissures,  some  of 
it  being  blown  in  by  the  wind.  This  makes  a  home 
for  the  seeds  and  spores,  which  grow  into  graceful 
rock-ferns  and  beautiful  nodding  columbines.  Many 
times  trees  start  to  grow  in  these  fissures,  and  their 
roots  grow  and  spread  until  they  spht  the  rocks  apart. 
In  time  one  part  of  the  rock  may  even  break  entirely 
away  from  the  other.  It  takes  a  long,  long  time  for 
this  to  happen,  for  the  growing  roots  work  very  slowly. 

Frost,  besides  splitting  rocks,  does  other  work 
which  the  boys  and  the  squirrels  appreciate.  It 
ripens  the  nuts  and  splits  open  their  outer  shells. 
You  would  have  a  sorry  time  getting  chestnuts  if  you 
had  to  crack  open  aU  the  burrs  yourselves.  And  how 
would  the  poor  squirrels  fare,  do  you  suppose?  Now, 
in  the  same  way  the  frost  opens  up  the  earth  and 
loosens  it. 

Have  you  ever  seen  on  cold  mornings  in  the  early 
spring  long  crystals  of  ice  which  extend  down  into 
the  ground?  You  break  them  under  your  feet  as 
you  walk  along.  These  long  hard  crystals  are  like 
little  plows,  loosening  and  turning  over  the  closely 
packed  soil  at  the  surface  of  the  earth.  They  do  in 
the  cold  weather  a  little  of  the  same  work  on  the  soil 
that  the  earthworms  do  in  summer.  One  often  sees 
these  crystals  of  ice  in  a  woodland  path,  where  they 
make  little  caves  just  under  the  surface  of  the  earth. 
They  look  Hke  pillars  in  a  fairy  temple.  When  you 
see  them  you  will  step  aside  so  as  not  to  crush  such 
beautiful  frost-work. 

On  a  bright  summer  morning  you  may  see  the  grass 
and  bushes  sparkling  with  dew.     But  in  the  cold 


SNOW,   ICE  AND   FROST  179 

weather,  when  the  frost  is  at  work,  this  sparkhng 
dew  is  changed  to  gUstening  frost  crystals,  every 
blade  of  grass  being  edged  with  them,  —  crystals  so 
delicate  and  so  exquisite  that  your  heart  is  filled  with 
wonder  at  the  sight  of  them. 

When  it  is  very  cold  the  frost  makes  beautiful 
pictures  upon  the  windows.  It  freezes  the  vapor 
that  was  hiding  in  your  breath  and  in  the  air  of  the 
room  wherever  it  touches  the  window-pane.  You 
would  never  think,  would  you,  that  the  frost  had 
such  power?  Why,  there  is  nothing  more  wonder- 
ful in  a  fairy  story  than  this!  In  the  make-believe 
story  a  fairy's  wand  turned  a  pumpkin  into  a  chariot; 
but  upon  the  window-pane  the  frost  really  does  turn  the 
tiny  beads  of  moisture  that  are  hidden  in  the  air  into 
the  most  beautiful  pictures  and  enchanting  forms. 

Did  you  ever  examine  carefully  the  frost-work  on 
the  window-pane?  Perhaps  you  saw  there  pictures 
of  castles  with  trees  and  mountains,  or  pictures  of 
open  fields  with  fences  and  woods  on  either  side, 
where  birds  seem  to  be  flying  across  the  open  space. 
And  did  you  ever  notice  the  long  plumes  and  the 
feathery  ferns? 

When  the  cold  freezes  the  vapor  which  collects 
upon  the  window-pane,  or  the  dew  upon  the  grass, 
we  call  it  frost,  but  wheil  it  freezes  the  vapor  which 
has  risen  into  the  sky  we  call  it  snow.  Hail  is  frozen 
rain-drops,  but  snow  is  frozen  vapor.  Those  invisible 
drops  are  changed  by  the  cold  into  the  softest,  whit- 
est, daintiest  flakes  of  snow. 

What  a  delightful  thing  it  is  to  watch  the  white, 
starry  flakes  coming  softly  down  to  cover  the  earth. 


180     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

They  make  no  noise,  as  does  the  rain  with  its  pitter- 
patter.  But  sometimes,  if  there  are  leaves  near  by, 
you  will  hear  the  least,  little  dry  rustle  among  the 
leaves  when  the  snowflakes  touch  them.  Then, 
even  if  it  is  too  dark  to  see,  your  quick  ears  tell  you 
that  it  is  snowing. 

The  snow,  instead  of  running  off  as  rain  does, 
collects  where  it  falls  until  the  ground  is  all  white. 
It  may  become  so  deep  that  it  is  hard  for  us  to  walk. 
Paths  and  sidewalks  are  covered  up,  even  the  roads 
are  hard  to  follow.  Sometimes  the  snow  is  so  deep 
that  nothing,  not  even  a  train  of  cars,  can  make  its 
way  through  it.  Just  think  of  so  much  snow  collect- 
ing in  a  few  hours  as  to  be  able  to  stop  a  powerful 
engine!  The  snowflakes,  then,  are  just  as  strong  as 
the  many  drops  of  water  in  the  brook,  only  instead 
of  moving  stationary  things  away  they  make  moving 
things  come  to  a  standstill.  And  yet  one  snowflake 
is  so  small  and  so  fragile  that  if  you  breathe  upon  it 
as  it  rests  a  second  on  your  coat  sleeve,  it  is  gone! 
Only  the  tiniest  bead  of  moisture  is  left  where  that 
one  snowflake  was. 

Did  you  ever  catch  the  snowflakes  on  your  sleeve 
and  look  carefully  at  them?  Sometimes  they  are 
soft  and  thick  like  downy  feathers.  Sometimes  they 
are  clear  and  hard  like  tmy  pellets  of  ice.  Some- 
times they  are  flat  and  very  thin  and  of  such  won- 
drous shapes  that  they  fill  you  with  amazement. 
Each  one  is  a  six-sided  crystal,  but  in  what  an  in- 
conceivable number  of  patterns!  Small  as  they  are, 
no  two  of  them  are  alike.    How  can  this  be  possible? 

Do  you  remember  the  leaves  you  examined  last 


SNOW,   ICE  AND   FROST  181 

autumn  to  see  if  you  could  find  two  exactly  alike? 
Did  you  find  them?  No,  you  could  not.  Is  it,  then, 
any  more  marvelous  to  you  that  the  tiny  snowflakes 
are  all  different  from  each  other? 

When  you  look  at  those  exquisite  crystals  of  the 
snow,  and  see  the  beauty  and  the  variety  of  the  six- 
sided  stars,  you  know  that  no  power  but  God's  could 
have  formed  their  wonderful  shapes,  and  that  no  law 
but  God's  could  have  given  those  fragile  stars  the 
power  that  they  possess  when  many  of  them  work 
together.  i 

When  the  snow  lies  thick  and  soft  over  the  ground 
it  is  indeed  like  wool,  for  it  keeps  the  earth  sheltered 
and  warm  underneath.  Where  the  snow  has  lain  all 
winter  the  grass  is  much  greener  than  it  is  where  it 
has  been  exposed  to  the  bitter  winds.  The  new  grass 
and  the  plants  have  a  better  chance  to  grow  because 
the  weight  of  the  snow  has  crushed  the  dead  grass 
and  fallen  leaves  down  into  the  soil  about  the  roots. 
The  earth  is  more  fertile  then  for  having  been 
wrapped  in  the  soft  blanket  of  snow  all  winter. 

Had  you  known  before  that  the  rain  water  blesses 
the  earth  in  so  many  ways,  and  is  so  useful,  and  that 
it  changes  into  so  many  different  forms?  There  are 
the  clouds,  the  rain,  the  brooks,  the  rivers,  the 
ocean,  the  bubbling  springs,  the  lakes,  and  then  the 
ice,  the  frost,  the  snow  and  the  hail.  We  may  well 
find  joy  in  all  these  and  not  discontent.  When  the 
rain  or  snow  hinders  our  own  plans,  we  should  re- 
member that  it  brings  God's  blessing  to  the  earth,  to 
the  plants,  to  the  animals  and  to  the  people  who  live 
upon  it. 


LESSON   22 
MINERALS   AND    CRYSTALS 

MEMORY  VERSE 

As  for  the  earth, 

The  stones  thereof  are  the  place  of  sapphires,  . 

And  it  hath  dust  of  gold. 

Job  28  :  5,  6. 

God  moves  in  a  mysterious  way 
His  wonders  to  perform. 

Cowper. 

The  Purpose 

This  lesson  upon  crystals  and  the  one  following  lipon 
metals  deal  with  subjects  as  wonderful  as  any  in  God's 
creation,  if,  indeed,  any  one  phase  of  that  creation  is  any 
more  marvelous  than  any  other.  The  wonder  of  crystal- 
lization is  a  lesson  in  itself  to  any  one,  young  or  old. 

The  special  lesson  which  is  to  be  drawn  from  it  is 
found  in  the  way  the  crystals  fit  together  and  fill  the 
space  in  which  they  are  formed.  For  crystals,  more  than 
anything  else  in  the  inanimate  world,  exhibit  a  truly  re- 
markable tendency  to  give  each  other  a  fair  share  of  the 
space  they  occupy. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

For  this  lesson  the  teacher  should  have  specimens  of 
iron  pyrites  in  slate,  of  granite,  and  of  a  well-shaped  quartz 
crystal.  If  possible,  have  other  crystals  so  the  children 
may  see  the  different  forms.    Some  crystals,  such  as  rock 

182 


MINERALS  AND   CRYSTALS  183 

candy  (crystals  of  sugar)  and  alum,  can  be  bought  at 
the  chemists,  if  it  is  not  possible  to  procure  minerals. 

A  striking  example  of  crystals  sharing  space  can  be 
obtained  by  dissolving  together  in  a  glass  of  hot  water 
one  ounce  of  potassium  bichlorate  and  one  ounce  of  copper 
sulphate.  If  a  straw  or  a  string  is  put  in  the  glass  the 
different  crystals  will  form  upon  it  and  show  quite  plainly. 

As  these  chemicals  are  poisonous  it  is  not  advisable 
for  the  children  to  handle  them,  but  they  should  see  the 
teacher's  results.  They  could  dissolve  alum  in  hot  water 
and  watch  the  crystals  form  as  it  cools  about  a  straw  or 
small  stick  resting  in  the  glass.  Always  make  a  saturated 
solution,  that  is,  make  the  Water  dissolve  as  much  alum 
as  it  will  hold,  when  crystals  are  desired. 

Where  possible,  the  children  should  be  taken  to  a 
museum  by  their  teacher  or  parents.  They  will  never 
forget  the  surprising  shapes  or  the  superb  colors  of  the 
crystals  which  they  will  see  there,  especially  when  the 
visit  is  made  in  connection  with  this  lesson. 

Hand  Work. 

A  list  of  minerals  and  crystals  each  pupil  knows  is  to 
be  entered  in  the  space  left  for  the  purpose. 

Use  the  blank  page  on  the  leaflet  for  some  original 
work.  The  children  may,  for  example,  draw  the  forms  of 
different  crystals  they  have  seen,  or  insert  pictures  of 
them,  or  write  an  account  of  their  experiment  with  alum. 

OPENING   TALK 

The  object  lesson  which  the  specimens  of  crystals  will 
furnish  is  the  best  introduction  to  the  story,  for  when 
they  see  crystals  the  children  will  be  anxious  to  learn 
how  they  are  formed. 


MINERALS   AND   CRYSTALS 

The  rain  water  about  which  we  have  just  been 
speaking  does  its  work  upon  the  surface  of  the  earth. 
Almost  all  of  it,  from  time  to  time,  is  drawn  up  by 
the  sun  to  make  the  clouds,  and  comes  back  once 
more  as  rain  to  continue  in  its  work  of  carving  out 
and  smoothing  over  the  earth's  surface. 

But  some  of  the  drops  of  rain  never  see  the  sun 
again.  They  go  down  so  deep  that  they  do  not 
come  back  even  in  springs.  They  are  not  lost, 
though,  for  all  their  wandering  about  deep,  deep 
under  ground.  Surely  the  Spirit  of  God  is  in  the 
earth,  however  far  down  the  drops  may  go,  and  He 
has  given  to  these  drops  a  work  to  do  as  well  as  to 
those  which  fall  upon  the  earth  and  flow  off  into 
the  brooks  and  rivers  and  oceans,  and  finally  make 
their  way  back  to  the  sky.  Would  you  like  to  know 
what  these  tiny  drops  do  which  sink  one  by  one  so 
deep  down  into  the  earth? 

The  brooks,  we  know,  need  to  have  many,  many 
drops  to  make  them  able  to  pick  up  and  carry  away 
pebbles  and  rocks,  or  even  sand.  A^Tiat  can  these 
others  accomplish  so  far  underground  where  the 
rocks  are  almost  solidly  packed  together?  Few  as 
they  are,  they  carry  away  with  them  parts  of  the 
rocks  they  travel  through,  only,  instead  of  break- 
ing off  what  they  carry  away,  these  drops  dissolve 

184 


MINERALS   AND   CRYSTALS  185 

part  of  the  very  rock  itself,  yet  a  part  that  we  can- 
not see.  Salt  is  a  part  of  a  loaf  of  bread  which  we 
cannot  see  or  take  away  when  once  it  has  mixed 
into  the  bread  dough.  But  if  that  loaf  of  bread 
were  turned  into  a  rock,  water  could  go  through  it 
and  take  out  the  salt. 

If  you  put  a  pebble  into  a  glass  of  water  it  would 
still  be  a  pebble.  But  if  you  should  put  a  lump  of 
salt  into  the  glass  of  water,  would  it  still  stay  there 
and  be  a  lump  of  salt?  Of  course  it  would  not. 
We  all  know  that  salt  dissolves  in  water.  It  is  there 
just  the  same,  for  the  water  tastes  salt,  but  we  can- 
not see  it  at  all,  or  feel  it.  The  water  holds  it  in 
solution,  we  say,  and  it  will  hold  it  just  as  long  as 
there  is  water  enough  to  do  it.  When  the  water 
evaporates  it  leaves  the  salt  behind  and  we  have 
our  lump  of  salt  again,  only  changed  into  small 
grains  like  sand. 

Now  this  is  the  difference  between  the  work  done 
by  the  water  which  flows  off  the  surface  of  the  earth 
and  that  which  sinks  so  gradually  in  toward  the 
center.  The  noisy,  laughing  little  brook  takes  up 
rocks  and  pebbles  and  carries  them  along  with  it, 
but  the  quiet  little  underground  drops,  all  nice  and 
warm  from  their  journey  into  the  deep  recesses  of 
the  earth,  gently  coax  away  the  minerals  which  are 
in  the  very  heart  of  the  rocks.  Very  softly  and  gently 
they  sink  through  the  rocks,  and  when  they  get  to  a 
crack  in  the  rock  or  a  small  hole  hke  an  empty  bubble, 
they  deposit,  or  drop,  the  atoms  they  have  been 
carrying.  Only,  instead  of  dropping  them  any- 
where and  hurrying  on,  as  does  the  water  in  the 


186     THE   EARTH  MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

brook,  they  often  give  up  a  part  of  themselves  and  are 
drops  of  water  no  longer.  They  unite  with  the  atoms 
they  are  laying  down  and  form  some  of  the  most 
beautiful  and  wonderful  things  in  God's  universe. 

Can  you  guess  what  these  wonderful  things  are 
that  the  underground  water  makes  in  the  cracks 
and  holes  of  the  rocks?  Yes,  they  are  crystals. 
Crystals  of  quartz,  of  emerald,  of  amethyst,  of 
diamonds,  of  garnets,  of  topazes,  of  copper  and 
even  of  salt.  Some  are  clear  and  transparent  like 
the  quartz  and  sapphires,  some  are  red,  some  blue, 
some  green  and  pink  and  yellow  and  purple  and 
black.  The  different  colors  are  quite  as  beautiful 
as  those  of  flowers,  and  yet  they  are  made  so  far 
below  the  ground  that  no  light  can  reach  them. 
You  shall  learn  later  how  they  came  afterward  to 
be  so  near  the  surface  that  we  can  find  and  see 
them. 

It  takes  a  long  time  for  the  drops  of  rain  water  to 
dissolve  the  atoms  in  the  heart  of  the  rocks  as  they 
sink  deeper  and  deeper,  but  warm  raindrops  can 
seem  to  take  almost  any  mineral  away  from  those 
deep  down  rocks  because  they  are  under  pressure. 
The  brook  can  take  a  rock  or  bowlder  and  quickly 
roll  it  along  because  it  is  strong  from  the  combined 
force  of  many  drops  working  together. 

But  the  underground  drops  have  to  work  very 
slowly  and  patiently.  One  sinks  dgwn  and  takes  a 
few  atoms,  then  others  follow,  all  going  the  same 
way  and  all  taking  away  with  them  in  solution,  like 
the  salt  in  the  glass  of  water,  some  of  those  tiny 
particles.     And  then  instead  of  ever  reaching  the 


MINERALS   AND   CRYSTALS  187 

large  river  and  ocean,  these  drops  come  to  a  crack 
or  a  little  empty  hole,  and  each  drop  lays  down  not 
only  its  load  of  atoms  but  itself  too,  and  together 
they  grow  into  these  beautiful  crystals.  The  first 
few  drops  will  grow  into  a  tiny  crystal  hardly  the 
size  of  a  needle  point;  but  as  more  drops  come  the 
crystals  grow  larger  and  larger,  —  some  crystals, 
like  beryl,  becoming  very  large,  as  much  as  three 
feet  in  diameter.  However  small  they  are  when  we 
find  them,  or  however  large  they  become  if  they  are 
left  to  grow  by  themselves,  they  always  have  their 
own  shape.  A  crystal  of  quartz  would  never  take 
the  form  of  a  crystal  of  garnet,  nor  would  a  crystal 
of  sulphur  ever  become  like  a  crystal  of  topaz. 
Isn't  it  wonderful  that  each  crystal  seems  to  know 
just  what  form  to  take? 

Every  mineral  has  a  law  which  God  has  given  to 
it,  and  when  it  has  an  opportunity  to  crystallize,  it 
always  forms  with  just  as  many  faces  (as  we  call  its 
sides)  as  had  been  given  to  it  by  that  law.  Does  it 
seem  strange  to  you  to  think  of  the  crystals  as  doing 
anything?  Rocks  have  always  seemed  just  cold, 
dead  rocks  to  you,  have  they  not?  Did  you  think 
that  there  was  any  part  of  the  rock  that  could  change 
and  grow? 

Yet  change  and  growth  is  everywhere  in  God's 
universe,  and  God  means  that  the  rocks  shall  change 
and  grow,  as  trees  and  plants  and  we  ourselves  do, 
only  much  more  slowly.  Does  He  not  change  the 
surface  of  the  earth  that  we  can  see?  Then  why  not 
the  deep  places  which  we  cannot  see? 

Look  at  the  cube  of  iron  pyrites  in  the  slate.    Who 


188     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR   MAN 

could  guess  that  the  plain  gray  slate  had  the  glit- 
tering particles  in  it  that  have  been  made  into  such 
pretty  Uttle  golden  cubes.  And  how  could  the 
raindrops  have  helped  to  make  the  iron  and  the 
sulphur,  which  they  found  in  the  slate  and  dis- 
solved out  of  it,  into  such  perfect  cubes?  It  is  very 
wonderful,  is  it  not? 

Or  take  a  piece  of  granite.  In  this  piece  you  have 
quartz,  the  transparent  particles;  feldspar,  the 
white,  pink  or  red ;  and  mica,  the  flat  scales ;  or  horn- 
blende, the  black  (sometimes  you  find  tourmaline 
there  instead  of  hornblende).  These  are  all  mixed 
up  together.  Although  you  can  see  them  quite 
readily  there  in  the  granite,  they  do  not  have  here 
their  own  particular  shape.  They  have  not  had 
room  to  grow  into  separate  crystals  as  the  single 
crystals  of  quartz  did.  Each  one  of  these  minerals 
has  a  shape  all  its  own,  but  when  they  are  all  mixed 
together  in  a  mass  of  molten  rock  and  the  rock  cools 
deep  underground  they  have  no  room  to  form  into 
their  own  separate  shapes.  They  are  crowded  to- 
gether and  must  do  the  best  they  can. 

So  all  together  they  make  the  crystalline  rock  of 
granite,  just  as  the  starry  snowflakes  join  together 
to  make  the  snowbank.  The  minerals  as  we  see 
them  in  the  granite  are  not  so  beautiful  as  the  sepa- 
rate crystals  of  quartz,  feldspar,  hornblende,  mica 
or  tourmaline  would  be;  but  granite  is  a  very  use- 
ful rock.  It  is  as  useful  as  crystals  are  beautiful. 
If  every  time  these  minerals  came  together  they 
had  all  gone  about  making  crystals  of  themselves 
without  regard  to  each  other,  we  could  have  had 


MINERALS  AND   CRYSTALS  189 

no  granite,  and  granite  is  very  precious  to  man  as  a 
building  stone.  Of  it  we  build  walls,  bridges, 
churches  and  great  public  buildings. 

It  is  not  only  when  they  cool  in  a  massive  rock 
like  granite  that  the  different  minerals  give  place 
to  each  other.  When  the  rain-drops  force  their 
way  through  the  rocks,  they  take  up  more  than  one 
kind  of  mineral  atoms.  Now  when  they  come  to 
the  open  space,  it  often  happens  that  each  kind  of 
mineral  wants  to  crystallize  and  each  must  grow 
into  a  crystal  of  its  own  shape.  So  they  have  to 
divide  up  the  room.  It  seems  strange,  does  it  not, 
to  think  of  crystals  dividing  fairly  the  space  they 
are  to  live  and  grow  in,  just  as  children  divide  up 
their  play  room  among  themselves  so  each  may  have 
a  corner  to  himself. 

How  do  the  crystals  know  about  the  room  each 
shall  need,  and  how  they  will  best  fit  in  together? 
Ah,  that  is  one  of  God's  beautiful  and  wonderful 
mysteries.  He  has  given  to  the  rocks  and  the 
different  minerals  in  the  rocks  certain  laws.  These 
laws  the  rock  which  you  look  upon  as  dead,  obeys. 
Whenever  there  is  a  chance  to  crystallize,  the 
minerals  will  do  so,  and  under  whatever  conditions 
they  find  themselves  they  do  the  best  they  can. 
When  there  is  room  for  each  to  grow  by  itself, 
these  minerals  make  of  themselves  such  beautiful 
crystals  of  such  wonderful  shapes  that  when  they 
are  found  they  are  treasured  as  gems,  and  people  go 
a  great  distance  to  visit  the  museums  where  they 
are  kept.  But  when  they  are  crowded  God's  laws 
are  still  obeyed,  whether  different  crystals  form  to- 


190     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

gether,  or  whether  there  is  only  room  for  them  to 
form  into  a  mass  of  crystaUine  rock  Uke  granite. 

Crystals  are  not  the  only  things  in  God's  world 
that  are  obliged  to  give  place  to  each  other.  Noth- 
ing can  always  Uve  just  for  itself.  But  how  many 
of  these  things  give  place  to  each  other  as  beauti- 
fully as  do  the  crystals?  Do  we  who  are  taught  God's 
law  and  have  the  will  to  do  it,  perform  it  as  well  as 
these  minerals  ,do? 

This  giving  place  to  each  other  is  a  beautiful  thing. 
Every  unselfish  act  is  beautiful,  whether  it  is  in  a 
group  of  crystals  that  can  delight  the  eye  or  among 
a  group  of  children  whose  generosity  and  kindness 
to  each  other  delight  the  soul. 


LESSON   23 
EARTH'S  UNDERGROUND   STOREHOUSE 

MEMORY  VERSE 

Surely  there  is  a  mine  for  silver, 

And  a  place  for  gold  which  they  refine. 

Iron  is  taken  out  of  the  earth, 

And  copper  is  molten  out  of  the  stone. 

Job  28  :  1,  2 

The  Purpose 

The  intention  of  this  lesson  is  to  show  not  only  the 
beneficence  of  God  in  storing  the  underground  world 
with  treasures  as  beautiful  as  they  are  useful,  but  also 
the  marvelous  working  of  that  law  by  which  the  world  is 
ever  changing  and  always  for  the  better. 

This  idea  will  be  repeated  in  many  of  the  succeeding 
lessons. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

If  a  visit  to  the  museum  could  be  made  between  the 
lesson  on  crystals  and  this  one  on  metals,  the  children 
would  have  a  much  clearer  idea  of  the  way  the  metals 
are  deposited  in  the  veins  of  the  rocks. 

Use  familiar  objects  to  make  the  point  of  contact  for 
the  pupils.  What  metals  do  they  see  about  them,  in  their 
homes,  in  the  town?  Which  is  most  useful?  which  most 
beautiful?  The  course  by  this  time  should  have  helped 
the  pupils  to  want  to  know  where  these  common  objects 
were  formed  ''in  the  beginning." 

191 


192     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

Hand  Work 

The  directions  on  the  leaflet  call  for  a  list  of  metals, 
answers  to  questions,  and  memorizing  of  the  Bible  verse. 

OPENING   TALK 

Where  is  the  great  storehouse  for  our  food?  Besides 
this,  there  are  all  the  other  substances  we  use  from  the 
earth.  Can  you  tell  me  w^hat  some  of  them  are?  (Be 
sure  that  granite,  from  the  last  lesson,  is  mentioned.) 
All  these  we  have  named  came  from  storehouses  under- 
ground. How  those  storehouses  are  filled  is  what  we  are 
to  hear  to-day. 


EARTH'S   UNDERGROUND   STOREHOUSE 

Those  little  yellow  cubes  of  iron  and  sulphur  that 
you  saw  in  the  specimen  of  slate  look  so  much  like 
gold  that  they  have  deceived  many  people.  The 
Spaniards  who  came  to  America  with  Columbus, 
seeking  for  gold,  took  shiploads  of  this  yellow  sub- 
stance back  to  Spain,  only  to  find  that  it  was  not  gold 
at  all.  Ever  since  that  time  people  have  called  it 
^^ Fool's  Gold." 

There  are  large  deposits  of  genuine  gold  hidden 
away  in  the  rocks  of  North  and  South  America,  but 
it  does  not  look  like  these  crystals  of  iron  pyrites 
(py-ri'-tes) .  ^Vhen  gold  crystallizes  it  has  its  own 
law  to  follow,  and  that  law  does  not  give  to  it  the 
shape  of  a  cube.  But  the  Spaniards  did  not  know 
this.  They  thought  the  little  crystals  were  gold  be- 
cause they  were  yellow  and  looked  like  gold,  and 
they  never  guessed  that  it  was  iron  and  sulphur 
that  they  were  taking  back  to  Spain,  instead  of  the 
gold  they  desired. 

Men  know  better  than  that  in  these  days.  They 
know  that  the  color  alone  does  not  identify  a  mineral ; 
they  know  that  the  shape  and  hardness  of  its  crystal 
tell  even  more  about  it  than  does  its  color.  These 
laws  for  the  forms  of  mineral  crystals  have  always 
been  the  same,  but  men  have  not  always  known  about 
them.     Little  by  httle  we  are  learning  God's  laws. 

193 


194     THE  EARTH  MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

We  are  learning  also  how  to  find  and  how  to  use  the 
gifts  which  God  has  stored  on  the  earth,  under  the 
earth  and  in  the  au\ 

You  have  learned  what  a  great  storehouse  there 
is  upon  the  earth,  in  the  growing  things  that  supply 
us  with  food  and  clothing.  The  underground  world 
is  just  as  truly  a  storehouse,  with  everything  in  it 
packed  away  so  methodically  that  it  makes  you 
think  of  a  real  storeroom.  It  is  almost  as  if  that 
rain  water  had  fingers,  and  went  under  the  earth's 
surface  hke  a  '^good  and  faithful  servant,"  picking  up 
and  sorting  out  the  different  minerals  and  putting 
them,  all  labeled  'nicely,  in  their  proper  place  upon 
the  shelves.  For  the  minerals  do  have  their  proper 
places  in  the  storehouse  within  the  earth,  and  it  is 
the  percolating  rain  water  that  has  carefully  put 
them  there.  The  rain  water  follows  God's  law,  and 
it  does  not  make  a  mistake. 

There  are  certain  minerals  that  are  usually  found 
together.  It  is  as  if  some  minerals  make  friends  with 
others  and  like  to  go  where  they  go.  Children  and 
grow^n  people  have  special  friends  and  live  in  groups 
and  families.  Dogs  and  birds  are  friendly  with  cer- 
tain others  of  their  kind,  and  especially  so  with 
human  beings.  And  do  you  remember  about  the 
plant  societies,  how  certain  plants  seem  to  be  happier 
gro^dng  together,  and  how  some  cannot  seem  to  grow 
■comfortably  with  certain  others?  So  even  the  rocks 
and  minerals  are  grouped  in  societies. 

Iron  and  sulphur  are  two  of  the  minerals  which 
often  get  together.  When  the  underground  rain 
water  goes  through  the  slate,  it  picks  out  the  invisible 


EARTH'S  UNDERGROUND  STOREHOUSE     195 

atoms,  aiid  they  associate  together  to  make  those 
pretty  Uttle  yellow  cubes  of  '' Fool's  Gold."  Iron  is 
not  found  with  sulphur  only.  It  makes  friends  also 
with  other  minerals,  and  then  it  takes  a  different 
shape  and  color.  When  it  combines  with  oxygen  it 
is  black,  as  one  would  expect  iron  to  be,  and  often 
rainbow  colors  glow  upon  the  shining  surface  of  the 
black  crystals. 

No  one  has  ever  yet  found  iron  all  alone.  We 
know  that  it  is  in  the  rocks,  but  it  is  so  mixed  with 
their  substance  that  we  can  never  find  it.  But  the 
rain  water  can  and  does  find  it.  The  water  coaxes 
the  iron  out  and  carries  it  away,  leaving  it  in  some 
convenient  place.  Now  as  iron  does  not  like  to  be 
alone,  it  makes  friends  with  other  minerals  before  it 
will  stay  comfortably  and  accumulate  in  the  cracks 
and  openings  that  are  like  little  shelves  in  a  store- 
room. 

Gold  is  stored  away  in  many  a  crack  and  crevice. 
It  seems  to'  take  quartz  as  one  of  its  friends,  for  these 
two  minerals  are  often  found  together.  Only,  in- 
stead of  combining  with  the  quartz  as  iron  does  with 
sulphur  or  with  oxygen,  the  gold  nestles  down  quite 
comfortably  beside  the  quartz  when  the  under- 
ground water  leaves  them  both  in  a  crevice. 

Often  those  cracks  are  large,  but  the  under- 
ground water  works  away  until  in  time  the  fissure  is 
all  filled  with  quartz  in  which  tiny  flecks  or  small 
lumps  of  gold  are  nestling  quite  cosily. 

Perhaps  this  gold  remains  hidden  in  the  ground  for 
a  long,  long  time.  But  nothing  in  this  world  remains 
always  the  same.     God's  law  is  the  law  of  change 


196     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

and  growth.  Even  while  the  vein  of  quartz  was 
gradually  filling  up  the  fissure,  the  fissure  itself  was 
changing.  It  was  probably  becoming  wider  and 
deeper,  by  the  action  of  great  forces  underground. 
For  there  is  a  great  force  at  work  in  those  under- 
ground rocks  which  cracks  and  crumples  them.  It 
pushes  upon  them  so  they  are  forced  up  in  many 
places,  and  the  rocks  that  were  hidden  deep  under- 
ground are  brought  to  light. 

Just  as  the  seed  that,  hidden  in  the  ground  away 
from  the  light  and  air,  comes  up  when  the  sun  calls 
it,  so  the  gold,  the  bright,  yellow  gold  that  looks  so 
like  the  sun's  rays,  at  last  comes  to  the  surface.  But 
it  was  not  the  sunbeam  that  called  the  gol^.  It  was 
pushed  up  by  a  force  that  comes  from  God,  a  strange 
force,  —  lifted  from  its  dark  underground  home  where 
no  sunbeam  could  ever  have  found  it,  or  seen  its 
golden  glow. 

Then  what  do  you  suppose  happened  to  those 
flecks  of  gold?  Why,  the  rain  water  went  to  work 
again  upon  that  vein  of  quartz  and  gold!  Only  this 
time  it  was  the  rain  water  that  fell  upon  the  earth 
and  flowed  away  in  brooks  and  rivers,  and  not  the 
underground  water,  that  collected  the  gold  and  the 
quartz  so  long  ago  and  deposited  them  in  the  fissures. 

Would  the  rain  water,  then,  flowing  in  brooks  and 
streams,  spoil  what  the  underground  water  had  done? 
Oh,  no!  not  spoil  it,  only  make  it  better! 

This  time  the  rain  water  goes  to  work  to  wear 
away  the  quartz,  setting  free  the  gold,  so  that  now 
bits  of  gold,  from  tiny  flecks  to  large  grains  and 
nuggets,  are  lying  loose  in  the  midst  of  quartz  sand. 


EARTH'S  UNDERGROUND  STOREHOUSE     197 

Then  the  waters  of  the  brooks  carry  the  gold  and 
the  bits  of  quartz  sand  as  far  as  they  can,  and  drop 
them,  nicely  sorted  in  layers  according  to  their 
weight. 

Do  you  remember  that  the  brooks  dropped  their 
heaviest  burdens  in  their  own  channels,  and  carried 
the  lighter  particles  along,  spreading  some  of  them 
out  in  the  low  place,  taking  others  on  to  the  ocean? 
Where,  then,  should  you  think  that  the  brooks  would 
drop  the  gold?  The  pieces  of  gold  were  smaller  than 
much  of  the  sand  and  gravel,  but  were  they  heavier 
or  lighter? 

Gold  is  hesivy.  It  is  one  of  the  heaviest  of  metals 
—  even  heavier  than  lead  or  iron  —  heavier,  too, 
than  the  grains  of  quartz  sand  or  the  pebbles  in  the 
gravel.  So  it  would  be  dropped  in  the  bed  of  the 
stream  with  the  heavier  pieces  of  quartz  and  rock, 
while  the  sand  was  carried  along  toward  the  sea. 
There  the  gold  would  lie,  not  packed  close  and  snug 
in  a  soHd  mass  as  it  was  for  so  long  in  the  fissure  of 
the  rock,  but  lying  loose  in  tiny  flakes  or  larger  grains 
and  nuggets.  It  had  become  a  free  thing.  Each  par- 
ticle, large  or  small,  was  an  individual,  and  could 
move  when  the  water  rolled  it  along  or  when  the 
pebbles  and  sand  pushed  against  it. 

The  gold  was  ready  now  for  men  to  use,  but  for  a 
long,  long  time  they  did  not  find  it.  Finally  some  one 
who  had  sharper  eyes  than  the  rest  noticed  the  pretty 
golden  specks  in  the  bed  of  a  stream,  just  as  some  one 
saw  the  blackberry  bush,  and  knew  that  the  berries 
were  better  because  the  bush  grew  in  better  soil. 
When  the  gold  had  been  discovered,  men  learned 


198     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

how  to  get  it  out  of  the  bed  of  the  stream,  how  to  use 
it  and  how  to  get  more  of  it.  But  it  was  the  rain 
water  that  found  it  first,  and  that  brought  it  to  Ught. 
After  that,  when  men  came  to  value  gold  so  much, 
they  learned  to  dig  deep  down  into  the  ground,  among 
the  mountains  where  it  w^as  stored,  and  get  it  out  for 
themselves. 

So  rain  water  is  not  only  helping  to  make  the  sur- 
face of  the  earth  more  and  more  as  God  wills  it  to  be, 
but  it  is  filling  the  storehouses  of  the  earth  and  then 
opening  them  up,  showing  us  the  bounties  that  God 
has  provided. 

''No  thing  shall  ye  lack,"  said  one  who  trusted  in 
God. 

''No  thing  shall  ye  lack,"  says  nature  to  us. 
"Only  learn  to  use  aright  the  bounties  that  God  has 
stored  away  for  you." 


LESSON  24 
GOD'S  WONDERFUL  MOUNTAINS 

MEMORY  VERSE 

In  his  hand  are  the  deep  places  of  the  earth ; 
The  heights  of  the  mountains  are  his  also. 

Ps.  95:4 

The  Purpose 

The  purpose  of  this  lesson  is  to  explain  how  the  metals 
were  carried  first  into  the  deep  places  of  the  earth  and 
then  brought  to  the  surface  when  they  are  ready  for 
man's  use;  and  to  impress  the  pupils'  minds  with  the 
mystery  and  majesty  of  these  cosmic  processes,  thus 
preparing  them  to  reverence  the  power  and  wisdom  of 
the  Creator. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

With  a  lateral  pressure  of  the  hands  force  sheets  of 
paper  which  are  lying  upon  a  flat  surface  into  folds  to 
show  the  lateral  pressure  or  the  ''mysterious  force" 
which  gave  birth  to  the  mountains.  Compare  the  leaves 
with  the  picture  of  the  folded  rocks  on  the  leaflet.  After 
the  story  is  read  review  the  main  facts  about  the  moun- 
tains, which  are  brought  out  in  the  lesson:  their  beauty 
and  grandeur;  their  usefulness  in  bringing  up  to  us 
treasures  that  had  been  stored  below;  their  usefulness  in 
preserving  what  grows  above  the  ground  by  bringing 
rain  and  storing  it  up,  and  the  importance  of  the  forests 
that  grow  on  their  sides.     Try  to  impress  the  children 

199 


200     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

with  the  mystery  and  majesty  of  the  mountains  them- 
selves, and  of  the  forces  that  brought  them  into  being. 

The  hymn  by  Isaac  Watts,  which  is  suggested  as  part 
of  the  memory  work  for  the  year,  may  well  be  intro- 
duced with  this  lesson  and  reviewed  at  intervals  dur- 
ing the  rest  of  the  year.  Have  the  pupils  read  it  from 
the  hymn  book  used  in  church. 

They  should  also  memorize  the  Bible  verse  and  prayer 
poem  found  on  the  leaflet. 

OPENING   TALK 

The  beginning  of  the  story  makes  a  suitable  review 
and  introduction  to  the  account  of  the  formation  of 
mountains. 


GOD'S  WONDERFUL  MOUNTAINS 

Do  you  remember  about  that  mysterious  force 
which  we  called  the  force  of  God,  and  what  it  did  to 
the  veins  of  quartz  and  gold  that  had  been  packed 
away  so  carefully  in  God's  underground  store- 
house? Would  you  like  to  hear  more  about  that 
mighty  force? 

Of  course  not  all  the  cracks  and  crevices  in  the 
rocks  are  filled  with  quartz,  and  not  all  the  veins  of 
quartz  have  Httle  flakes  of  gold  lying  enclosed  within 
the  crystalline  mass.  Neither  does  all  the  slate  rock 
have  those  pretty  crystals  of  iron  pyrites.  Differ- 
ent minerals  are  distributed  in  different  places. 
But  in  whatever  rocks  the  minerals  are,  the  under- 
ground water  finds  them  and  carries  them  away  to 
be  put  in  their  proper  places. 

There  are  many,  many  fissures  throughout  the 
rocks  which  make  up  the  world.  Indeed,  rocks 
everywhere  are  full  of  them.  Look  and  see  for 
yourselves  how  those  that  show  above  the  surface 
of  the  ground  are  crossed  by  cracks,  small  and  large. 
Those  fissures  that  you  see  are  empty  except  where 
they  are  filled  up  by  small  pieces  of  rock,  and  by 
earth  and  growing  things.  The  surface  water 
enters  the  surface  cracks  and  tends  to  make  them 
wider  and  deeper;  but  the  underground  water  fills 
up  the  deep-down  fissures. 

201 


202     THE  EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

As  you  have  already  learned,  the  underground 
water  is  like  the  servant  that  brings  treasures  to 
the  store-room  and  packs  them  away  so  nicely, 
while  the  surface  water  is  like  the  servant  that 
opens  the  storehouse  and  distributes  the  treasures 
for  people  to  use. 

See  if  you  can  tell  what  use  we  make  of  some  of 
these  minerals:  gold,  silver,  copper,  lead,  iron, 
platinum,  sulphur,  salt,  tin,  aluminum,  mercury, 
zinc  and  nickel.  There  are  so  many  more  that  it 
would  take  a  large  book  to  tell  about  them.  Some 
are  individual  minerals  like  the  gold  and  silver, 
some  are  joined  together  like  the  iron  and  sulphur 
in  the  little  yellow  cubes,  and  like  the  sodium  and 
chlorine  which  make  common  salt. 

Some  of  these  minerals  we  might  do  without. 
The  metals,  as  we  call  gold,  silver,  lead  and  zinc, 
are  not  necessary  for  life.  The  first  people  who 
lived  never  had  them.  But  salt  and  iron,  in  some 
form  which  can  be  taken  up  by  growing  things, 
are  absolutely  necessary  to  the  life  of  man  and 
animals  alike,  and  even  plants  seem  to  need  them 
too. 

We  could  live,  though  we  should  still  be  uncivilized 
people,  perhaps  even  savages,  if  we  had  not  found 
and  learned  to  use  metals  like  iron,  gold  and  silver. 
But  we  could  not  live  at  all,  neither  could  the 
animals  or  the  plants,  if  the  rain  water  in  sinking 
down  did  not  free  those  invisible  particles  of  iron 
and  sodium  and  potash  and  the  other  mineral  salts, 
as  we  call  them,  and  carry  them  to  the  searching 
rootlets  of  the  plants, 


GOD'S  WONDERFUL  MOUNTAINS        203 

Would  you  like  to  know  something  more  about 
the  way  those  filled-up  fissures  which  we  call  veins 
come  to  be  near  the  surface?  You  will  find  it  true, 
as  the  poet  Cowper  said,  that 

God  moves  in  a  mysterious  way 
His  wonders  to  perform. 

When  the  world  was  young,  and  when  the  thick, 
heavy  fog  lay  so  closely  about  it,  there  were  no 
mountains,  not  even  when  the  first  bit  of  land 
showed  above  the  surface  of  the  great  enveloping 
ocean.  For  the  mountains  are  earth's  wrinkles 
and  came  when  it  was  getting  old. 

Does  it  seem  strange  to  you  to  think  of  the  world 
as  growing  old?  Why,  everything  grows  old!  The 
sapling  grows  into  the  mighty  oak,  the  apple- 
blossom  into  a  delicious  apple,  the  puppy  into  a 
wise  and  faithful  watch-dog.  The  young  mountain 
brooks  flow  into  the  older  river  which  sweeps  peace- 
fully along  to  the  sea.  The  sun  and  moon  and  stars 
grow  old  and  change  their  light  and  heat.  Then 
why  should  not  the  world  grow  old? 

If  our  world  had  always  remained  young  we  could 
not  have  lived  upon  it.  It  was  only  after  it  had 
commenced  to  grow  old,  only  after  it  had  become 
wrinkled  and  had  given  up  some  of  its  secret  treas- 
ures, that  it  was  fitted  to  become  the  abode  of  man. 

Did  you  ever  notice  the  wrinkles  upon  a  cold 
baked  apple?  When  it  is  just  taken  from  the  oven 
it  is  round  and  smooth,  but  when  it  has  grown  cold 
its  surface  settles  into  wrinkles.  So  it  is  with  our 
earth. 

The  crust  that  was  so  hot  those  long,  long  ages 


204     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

ago,  so  hot  that  the  rain  hissed  off  in  steam  the  mo- 
ment it  touched  its  surface,  had  no  great  ridges  upon 
it.  But  when  it  became  colder  and  a  crust  of  soUd 
rock  had  formed,  the  surface  began  to  crack  and 
wrinkle,  that  is,  the  mountains  appeared.  The 
mysterious  force  within  our  earth  which  God  used 
pushed  and  crumpled  the  crust  of  the  earth  as  it 
grew  cold,  making  cracks  and  fissures  all  through 
the  rocks,  and  finally  raising  them  up  in  long  ridges. 

If  you  should  take  the  leaves  of  your  book,  or 
some  sheets  of  paper  which  are  lying  flat,  and  push 
them  from  each  side  they  would  rise  up  in  a  ridge. 
Try  it  and  see  if  they  do  not.  If  it  had  been  the 
book  cover  that  you  had  pushed,  it  would  have 
cracked  and  broken  where  you  bent  it. 

In  the  same  way  the  rocks  of  the  earth's  crust 
cracked  and  broke  when  they  were  bent  upwards, 
and  the  chains  of  jagged  mountains  were  formed. 
This  opened  up  to  the  action  of  rain  water  the 
hidden  rocks,  bringing  them  nearer  to  the  surface 
where  man  can  find  their  treasures.  The  moun- 
tains, you  see,  are  the  doors  through  which  God 
opens  the  storehouses  of  His  underworld. 

Those  long  chains  of  mountains  which  have  been 
folded  up  on  the  earth  do  even  more  for  us  than  to 
bring  the  storehouses  of  the  underground  rocks 
within  our  reach.  They  help  to  fill  the  storehouses 
which  we  have  learned  are  upon  the  surface  of  the 
earth.  For  they  cover  their  own  slopes  and  the  valleys 
below  with  growing  things.  They  catch  the  clouds 
that  come  floating  in  from  the  ocean  and  cause  them 
to  give  up  the  rain  which  they  hold.     They  store  up 


GOD'S  WONDERFUL  MOUNTAINS        205 

the  snow  and  give  it  slowty  back,  as  water,  to  the 
brooks.  The  deep  moss  that  carpets  the  floors  of 
those  great  forests  upon  the  mountain  sides  holds 
back  the  rain  water  Uke  a  sponge,  slowly  letting  it  go. 

If  it  were  not  for  the  mountains  with  their  slowly 
melting  snow  and  with  the  thick  moss  holding  back 
the  snow  and  the  rain,  the  water  would  rush  down 
the  mountain  sides  into  the  brooks  and  into  the  rivers 
and  into  the  sea  in  roaring  torrents.  It  would  carry 
away  everything  in  its  path,  and  then  leave  a  dry 
river  bed  and  a  dry  world  behind  it.  In  some  coun- 
tries where  they  have  cut  off  all  the  forests  from 
the  mountain  sides  the  streams  are  like  that, — 
raging  torrents  when  it  rains,  dry  gorges  soon  after. 
But  where  the  forests  clothe  the  mountains  the 
brooks  flow  constantly  and  not  too  swiftly,  as  do 
also  the  broad,  peaceful  rivers. 

The  mountains  serve  us  in  other  ways.  They 
unlock  to  us  the  secret  treasures  stored  up  for  our 
need.  They  tell  us,  too,  in  the  rocks  they  bring 
up  from  the  deep  places  of  the  earth,  such  wonder- 
ful stories  of  the  way  they  were  made  and  of  the 
strange  plants  and  animals  that  lived  on  the  earth 
before  we  came.  For  all  the  rocks  tell  a  story  about 
our  world  and  how  it  has  grown  to  be  what  it  is 
now.  Men  have  been  learning  to  read  the  stories 
the  rocks  have  to  tell,  as  well  as  to  dig  mines  to 
secure  the  precious  metals  and  the  minerals  that 
came  up  with  them,  so  carefully  stored  away  in  their 
ancient  fissures.  Are  not  the  stories  precious  too? 
For  they  are  part  of  that  wisdom  and  knowledge 
which  is  worth  more  than  gold. 


206     THE   EARTH  MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

But  they  tell  us  the  greatest  message  of  all  when 
they  speak  to  our  hearts  of  the  power  and  majesty 
of  God.  He  has  made  them  very  beautiful  with 
their  great,  rocky  cliffs,  with  the  delicate  fronds  of 
ferns  growing  in  their  crevices  and  carpeting  the 
floor  of  the  mighty  forests  on  their  sides.  The 
marvel  of  these  great  mountains  is  part  of  the  won- 
der of  God;  and,  as  our  Bible  verse  tells  us,  the 
heights  of  the  mountains  are  His.  Is  it  not  true 
that  ''the  strength  of  the  hills  is  His"?  And  is  it 
to  be  wondered  at  that  people  have  called  them 
''the  hills  of  God,"  or  that  men  feel  very  near  to 
God  when  they  see  those  massive  mountains  lifting 
their  peaks  above  the  clouds  and  hiding  their  feet 
deep  down  in  the  recesses  of  the  mysterious  under- 
ground world?  When  we  see  these  hills  of  God  or 
think  about  them,  I  believe  we  will  understand 
what  the  writer  of  the  hymn  meant  when  he  said, 

I  sing  the  mighty  power  of  God 
That  made  the  mountains  rise. 


LESSON   25 

LIFE   COMES  UPON  THE  WORLD: 
ROCK  MAKING 


MEMORY  VERSE 

O  Lord,  how  manifold  are  thy  works! 
In  wisdom  thou  hast  made  them  all: 
The  earth  is  full  of  thy  riches. 

Ps.  104:24 

The  Purpose 

That  every  particle  of  the  whole  world,  even  the  un- 
seen and  minute,  is  used  in  God's  plans  for  its  develop- 
ment is  the  lesson  to  be  brought  out  in  this  story.  Also 
the  important  fact  that  nothing  is  lost  or  put  aside,  but 
it  is  used  over  and  over  again  for  better  and  better  ends. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

The  lessons  so  far  studied  in  this  section  will  have 
given  the  children  some  idea  of^  the  vast  changes  that 
have  come  to  our  world  as  well  as  of  the  agencies  which 
have  been  at  work  to  make  them.  Subsequent  lessons 
will  deal  wdth  the  strange  and  interesting  forms  of  life 
which  occupied  the  world  before  man  came  upon  it.  This 
lesson  does  not  follow  in  chronological  order,  but  goes  back 
to  an  indeterminate  past  while  all  the  agencies  were  still 
at  work  making  the  world  ready  for  its  inhabitants. 

The  teacher  needs  to  note  that  two  separate  things 
are  here  to  be  taught:  the  appearance  of  primitive  forms 
of  life  in  the  water,  and  the  formation  of  rock  from  s.and 

207 


208     THE  EARTH   MADE   READY  FOR  MAN 

and  clay  and  stones,  and  from  tiny  shells  in  the  depth 
of  the  sea. 

If  it  should  be  possible  for  the  teacher  to  see  specimens 
of  foraminifera  or  rhizopods  through  a  microscope  she  could 
impress  upon  the  children  in  a  very  vivid  way  the  minute- 
ness and  beauty  of  those  (probably)  first  forms  of  animal 
life  with  which  our  world  was  peopled. 

The  children  should  be  encouraged  to  look  for  the 
different  kinds  of  rock  mentioned  in  this  lesson.  If  they 
have  no  chance  to  visit  the  open  country,  let  them  see 
the  rock  of  which  different  buildings  are  made.  They 
should  be  told  what  kind  or  kinds  of  rock  are  the  common 
or  ''country"  rock  of  the  vicinity. 

Hand  Work 

The  answers  to  questions  on  the  leaflet  may  be  made 
at  home,  or  time  may  be  given  for  that  work  at  the  next 
lesson  period. 

OPENING   TALK 

Did  you  know  that  there  are  different  sorts  of  rock  in 
the  world?  We  have  talked  of  one  kind  that  is  much 
used  in  building.  What  is  its  name?  Yes,  granite. 
You  can  tell  me,  too,  what  it  is  made  of  —  that  is  right, 
crystals  that  did  not  have  room  to  take  their  usual  forms. 

Now  not  all  of  the  rocks  are  granite.  Wouldn't  you 
like  to  know  the  other  kinds,  so  that  when  you  see 
rocks  you  could  tell  one  from  another  as  you  can  plants 
or  animals?  You  would  like  to  know,  too,  how  they  are 
made;  and  you  will  find  that  the  busy  worker  you  have 
heard  so  much  about  is  the  one  who  had  much  to  do  in 
making  the  rocks,  —  water.  This  time  it  is  not  alone  the 
falling  raindrops,  or  the  snow  and  ice,  or  the  brooks  and 
rivers;  it  is  the  great  ocean  itself  and  the  forms  of  life  in 
it  that  does  part  of  the  work,  as  you  shall  hear. 


LIFE   COMES  UPON  THE  WORLD: 
ROCK   MAKING 

While  the  earth  was  gradually  cooling,  long  before 
it  had  become  cold  enough  for  its  surface  to  be  folded 
into  mountains  and  valleys;  while  the  rain  water 
was  busy  wearing  away  the  rocks,  and  while  the 
underground  water  was  storing  up  the  many  minerals 
hidden  there,  living  things  began  to  grow. 

It  was  not  upon  the  land  that  these  living  things 
commenced  to  grow,  but  in  the  water  of  the  vast 
ocean.  They  were  such  tiny  particles  of  life,  those 
first  plants,  that  no  eyes  like  ours  could  ever  have 
seen  them.  But  God  was  working  in  and  through 
them.  It  was  because  of  His  thought  and  His  love 
that  they  had  appeared  upon  the  world.  Those  in- 
visible plants  were  cared  for,  even  though  they  were 
seemingly  lost  in  the  vast,  surging  sea.  For  God  is 
everywhere,  in  the  tiny  ocean  plant  as  well  as  the 
massive  mountain.  His  care  is  for  each  and  every 
thing  upon  the  earth,  under  the  earth,  in  the  water 
and  in  the  air  which  is  about  the  earth. 

Then  other  forms  of  life  appeared.  These  were 
the  tiniest  of  tiny  shell-forming  animals.  Both  those 
very,  very  small  plants  and  shells  increased  in  such 
countless  numbers  that  they  filled  the  vast  ocean 
with  their  minute  forms. 

Ages  and  ages  rolled  by,  and  during  all  that  time 

209 


210     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

empty  shells  were  dropping  slowly  to  the  bottom  of 
the  sea  and  accumulating  there  in  thick  masses. 

During  this  time,  too,  the  land  was  gradually  rising 
out  of  the  ocean,  and  the  ocean  was  becoming  less 
vast.  You  will  remember  that  not  all  of  the  rain- 
drops that  rose  to  the  clouds  in  the  form  of  vapor  got 
back  to  the  sea  again.  They  gave  themselves  up  to 
becoming  the  beautiful  minerals.  There  were  still 
other  drops  that  never  even  started  up  into  the 
clouds  to  begin  that  long  journey,  but  sank  into  the 
gravel  and  the  sand  and  the  clay  which  the  rivers  had 
brought  with  them  to  the  ocean  and,  combining  with 
these,  helped  to  make  new  rocks. 

That  sounds  odd,  does  it  not?  Who  would  think 
that  the  pieces  of  rock,  the  pebbles,  the  sand  and  the 
clay  that  the  rain  water  in  the  brooks  and  rivers  had 
been  so  patiently  wearing  away  from  the  earth's 
crust  would  ever  be  used  for  making  new  rock?  Yet 
you  know  that  the  leaves  that  drop  off  the  trees  are 
turned  into  soil  to  make  other  trees  grow.  Does  it 
seem  very  much  stranger  that  the  worn  pieces  of 
rock  should  be  used  to  make  new  ones? 

Those  pebbles  which  the  rivers  had  been  bringing 
down  to  the  ocean  had  been  accumulating  upon  the 
ancient  sea  beach  for  countless  years.  The  sand  and 
the  clay,  also,  had  been  accumulating  there  in  such 
thick  masses  that  the  layers  upon  the  top  pressed 
very  heavily  upon  those  below.  The  pressure  was  so 
gi'eat  that  the  pebbles  and  the  sand  and  the  clay, 
saturated  as  they  were  with  the  water  of  the  ocean, 
became  gradually  compressed  into  masses  of  solid 
rock. 


ROCK   MAKING  211 

Did  you  ever  see  any  rock  called  pudding-stone? 
That  is  what  the  pebbles  made  when  the  thick  mass 
of  them,  lying  by  the  ocean's  edge,  was  pressed  with 
such  force  that  it  was  cemented  into  a  solid  rock.  The 
sand  was  pressed  into  sandstone  and  the  clay  into 
slate. 

All  through  the  world  immense  deposits  of  sand- 
stone and  slate  are  found,  but  the  conglomerate  rock 
is  not  very  common.  It  is  often  called  Roxbury  pud- 
ding-stone, and  it  is  used  for  buildings.  Sandstone 
is  used  for  trimming  buildings,  and  often  for  the  build- 
ings themselves;  also  for  paving  sidewalks  and  street 
crossings.  Slate  is  most  useful  for  covering  roofs, 
although  it  is  used  in  many  other  ways. 

You  would  not  have  thought  when  you  saw  that 
piece  of  slate  that  it  was  made  under  the  bottom  of 
the  sea,  out  of  particles  of  older  rocks  that  the  rain 
water  had  washed  off,  and  the  brooks  and  rivers  had 
carried  into  the  ocean. 

You  would  not  know,  until  you  were  told,  that  the 
sandstone  was  made  in  the  same  way.  Yet  if  you 
look  very  closely  at  a  piece  of  sandstone  you  will  see 
the  grains  of  sand  plainly  enough,  and  it  is  quite  easy 
to  see  the  rounded  water-worn  pebbles  in  the  pud- 
ding-stone. 

So  all  the  material  that  the  rain  water  had  been 
wearing  from  the  earth  and  carrying  to  the  sea  was 
changed  back  into  rock,  and  in  time  raised  to  the 
surface  of  the  earth,  there  to  be  worn  off  again. 

Other  rocks  besides  these  were  being  made  with  the 
help  of  the  percolating  drops  of  sea  water,  but  tlie 
particles  that  went  to  make  thorn  had  never  been 


212     THE   EARTH   MADE  READY   FOR  MAN 

upon  the  land.  These  particles  had  accumulated  far 
out  upon  the  ocean  floor  beyond  the  thick  beds  of 
sand  and  clay.  Can  you  guess  what  they  could  have 
been? 

You  remember  we  spoke  of  those  countless,  im- 
perceptible creatures  that  lived  in  tiny  shells  in  the 
ocean.  These  slowly  sifted  down  throughout  those 
long,  long  ages,  and  settled  upon  the  ocean  floor. 
One  would  hardly  think  there  would  be  enough  of 
them  to  make  a  thick  mass  of  rock.  But  so  it  was, — 
age  after  age  they  collected  in  great  quantities  upon 
the  ocean  floor,  and  in  the  course  of  time  they 
were  pressed  into  solid  rock  called  limestone  and 
marble. 

You  have  seen  many  things  made  of  marble, — 
statues,  table  tops,  mantel-shelves,  and  the  stairs 
and  floors  of  large  buildings.  The  glistening  white 
marble  of  which  statues  and  table  tops  are  made  is  a 
crystalline  form,  made  by  the  underground  water 
carrying  a  mineral  in  solution. 

Other  kinds  of  marble  are  made  under  the  floor  of 
the  ocean  by  the  help  of  those  drops  which  soak 
through  into  the  mass  of  accumulated  shells.  The 
pressure  and  the  water  and  the  heat  make  marble  of 
the  mass  of  shells,  because  in  them  are  found  the 
same  mineral  that  the  underground  water  carried  in 
solution  to  make  the  glistening  white  marble.  In 
some  kinds  of  limestone  we  can  see  many  of  the  little 
shells  quite  plainly.  There  they  lie  embedded  in  the 
stone,  perfectly  preserved. 

How  marvelous  it  is  that  those  pretty  Httle  shells 
should  be  preserved  through  all  these  ages.     They 


ROCK  MAKING  213 

were  part  of  a  living  creature  when  no  eye  could  see 
them  to  enjoy  their  delicate  beauty.  There  were  no 
children  then  to  run  and  pick  up  those  shells  which 
had  been  cast  up  on  the  beach.  But  after  millions 
and  millions  of  years  they  are  seen  preserved  in  their 
marble  bed. 

It  seems  very  strange  that  drops  of  water,  working 
together,  could  have  the  strength  to  do  such  wonder- 
ful things.  It  seems  quite  as  strange  as  that  those 
dainty,  starr^^  snowflakes  we  were  talking  about 
could  accumulate  into  such  a  powerful  mass  as  to 
stop  steam  engines.  Who  could  believe  that  the 
fragile  shells  made  by  those  little  marine  animals, 
some  of  them  quite  invisible,  could  accumulate  in 
such  quantities  as  to  be  pressed  into  rocks  massive 
enough  to  make  towering  mountains! 

Yet  in  such  marvelous  ways  does  God  work.  To 
those  small  and  often  unobserved  creations  He  gives 
the  chance  to  do  something  great  when  they  act  to- 
gether. They  not  only  accomplish  what  might  seem 
an  impossible  thing,  but  they  are  so  under  the  direc- 
tion of  His  laws  that  they  do  their  work  at  all  times, 
wherever  they  are.  The  raindrops  are  still  wearing 
away  the  rocks;  the  loosened  fragments  and  particles 
are  still  being  deposited  in  the  sea,  where  they  all 
even  now  are  being  made  into  rock.  In  the  depths 
of  the  ocean  the  shells  are  still  accumulating,  where 
they  rest  upon  those  underneath  with  a  pressure  that 
will  make  of  them  chalk  or  limestone  or  marble. 


LESSON  26 
FOSSILS 

MEMORY  VERSE 

The  earth  shall  be  full  of  the  knowledge  of  the  Lord,  as  the 
waters  cover  the  sea. 

/s.  11:9 

The  Purpose 

This  lesson  about  the  fossils  is  intended  to  increase 
and  deepen  the  child's  wonder  at  the  marvelous  pro- 
cesses going  on  in  the  world  beneath  his  feet  and  under 
the  sea. 

His  love  for  God  should  be  deeper  and  his  trust  stronger 
after  he  has  learned  about  the  way  the  delicate  forms  of 
life  have  been  cared  for,  and  then  wonderfully  preserved, 
so  that  the  earth  may  indeed  be  filled  with  the  knowledge 
of  the  Lord  and  of  the  processes  through  which  the 
divine  forces  work. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

If  any  of  the  children  are  fortunate  enough  to  Hve  in 

the  vicinity  of  fossihferous  rocks  the  teacher  can  apply 

this  lesson  with  peculiar  force.     Specimens  in  a  museum 

or  from  some  one's  collection  will  help  in  teaching.     In 

all  these  lessons  the  children  should  be  encouraged  to 

hunt   for   rocks,    collect   them    and   learn   their   names. 

Show  the  picture  on  the  leaflet  after  the  story  has  been 

read  to  the  class. 

214 


FOSSILS  215 

The  teacher  should  make  very  impressive  the  length 
of  time  that  must  have  elapsed  while  these  different 
forms  of  life  were  growing  and  changing  and  while  the 
rocks  that  preserved  their  shape  were  being  made.  Show 
how  the  prophecy  given  in  the  memory  verse  is  fulfilled 
through  the  records  of  nature's  book. 

OPENING    TALK 

Have  you  seen  any  of  the  rocks  that  we  talked  about 
last  Sunday?  Can  you  tell  what  is  the  common  rock 
about  your  home?  What  can  you  tell  about  the  way  it 
was  made? 

Think  of  some  of  the  ways  you  find  qut  what  you  want 
to  know.  You  ask  questions,  or  you  read  books  which  can 
tell  you.  When  people  wanted  to  find  out  what  hap- 
pened before  any  one  lived  on  the  earth  they  found  a 
record  which  could  tell  them.  We  call  it  nature's  book, 
and  that  means  God's  book,  too.  It  is  not  printed  or 
written  on  paper;  it  has  lasted  many  centuries  and  will 
last  ages  more.  What  that  book  is,  how  it  was  made, 
and  some  things  it  tells,  you  shall  hear  from  our  story 
about  fossils. 


FOSSILS 

Have  you  ever  been  to  the  seashore  and  watched 
the  waves  come  rolUng  up  over  the  beach?  Have  you 
ever  noticed  how  one  wave  will  roll  up  and  leave  its 
burden  of  shells  or  seaweed,  and  then  hurry  back  to 
give  the  next  wave  its  turn? 

Sometimes  the  next  wave  will  be  higher  and  will 
push  the  seaweed  farther  up  on  the  beach ;  but  if  the 
tide  is  going  out  the  wave  will  not  reach  so  far,  and 
the  seaweed  and  the  shells  will  be  left  upon  the  sand 
until  the  next  tide  comes  in.  It  may  be  that  the 
waves  of  the  next  tide  will  bring  in  quantities  of  sand 
which  will  cover  all  the  shells  and  seaweed,  and  leave 
the  beach  as  clean  as  if  there  had  never  been  anything 
there  excepting  the  smooth,  white  sand.  But  under- 
neath, the  shells  and  seaweed  lie  flat  and  close,  while 
the  wet  sand  is  piled  higher  and  higher  over  them. 

Now  in  that  long  ago  time  that  we  have  been  tell- 
ing about,  the  waves  did  just  the  same  as  they  do 
now.  They  would  roll  up  on  the  sandy  beaches  and 
leave  shells  scattered  here  and  there  on  the  wet  sand. 
Then  after  the  tide  had  gone  out  the  new  tide,  coming 
in,  would  bring  sand,  and  they  would  be  all  nicely 
covered  up,  where  they  would  lie  undisturbed. 

Sometimes  there  would  be  a  sudden  shower,  a 
shower  where  the  raindrops  were  very  large  and  beat 
upon  the  sand,  leaving  little  dents  wherever  they 

216 


FOSSILS  217 

fell,  just  as  we  have  showers  now  when  the  rain- 
drops are  so  large  that  we  say  they  make  ''cups  and 
saucers." 

Sometimes  the  wind  ruffled  the  water  in  the  shallow 
pools  left  upon  the  beach  by  the  receding  tide.  The 
ruffled  water  sometimes  rippled  the  sand  underneath, 
leaving  it  in  ridges  which  we  call  ripple  marks.  You 
must  have  noticed  these  when  you  were  playing  on 
the  seashore. 

Those  ripple  marks  and  those  indentations  made 
by  the  raindrops  so  long  ago  would  be  covered  over 
by  the  sand  which  the  next  tide  would  bring  in,  just 
as  the  shells  and  the  seaweed  were,  and  there  they, 
too,  would  rest  undisturbed  by  any  footfall  or  any 
little  spade  or  shovel. 

So  the  years  went  by.  Slowly,  oh,  so  slowly,  the 
sand  deep  down  underneath  was  turned  to  rock,  and 
in  that  rock,  all  nicely  preserved,  were  the  shapes  of 
those  sea  shells,  the  shapes  of  the  seaweed,  the  marks 
made  by  the  rippled  sand  and  by  the  raindrops. 

Those  shapes  were  locked  in  the  deep  rocks  and 
hidden  away  from  sight,  just  as  the  minerals  and 
metals  were.  They,  too,  were  treasures  in  God's 
underground  storehouse,  and,  like  the  rocks  holding 
the  minerals  and  metals,  they  have  been  brought  up 
to  the  surface  where  we  can  now  see  them. 

But  the  shapes  of  the  Httle  shells  and  of  the  sea- 
weed, and  the  marks  of  the  raindrops  and  of  the 
rippled  sand  are  treasures  of  a  different  kind  from  the 
useful  metals  and  the  beautiful  minerals.  They  are 
treasures  because  they  give  us  knowledge.  They 
form  a  part  of  the  book  of  nature,  and  they  tell  us 


218     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

what  lived  on  the  earth  so  very,  very  long  ago.  Did 
you  ever  know  before  that  rocks,  just  the  common 
rocks  that  you  see  all  about,  were  part  of  a  great 
book? 

The  pebbles  lying  by  the  side  of  the  road  or  on  the 
sea  beach  have  a  history,  and  they  tell  to  all  those 
who  can  read  from  them  where  and  of  what  they 
were  made.  They  do  not  tell  us  exactly  how  they 
were  made,  for  that  is  one  of  God's  secrets.  The  great 
cliffs,  and  the  boulders  and  the  blocks  from  which 
our  walls  and  buildings  are  made,  all  tell  us  stories, 
such  wonderful  stories! 

The  great  cliff  of  pudding-stone  will  tell  you,  if  you 
can  read,  ''I  was  made  out  of  the  pebbles  that  the 
rivers  brought  down  to  the  margin  of  the  ocean." 

The  large  squares  of  sandstone  which  make  your 
sidewalk  will  say,  ''I  was  a  part  of  a  sea  beach  long, 
long  ago." 

The  slate  upon  your  roof  will  say,  '^I  was  the 
clay  that  made  the  floor  of  the  ocean  ages  and  ages 
ago." 

The  granite  blocks  built  into  a  church  will  say, 
''I  was  made  deep  under  ground  where  there  was  no 
room  for  all  the  minerals  of  which  I  am  made  to  form 
in  their  own  pretty  shapes." 

The  marble  that  makes  such  bright  patterns  on  the 
floor  of  a  bank  building  will  say,  ^'T  was  made  deep 
under  the  sea  from  thousands  and  thousands  of  tiny 
shells,  the  first  there  ever  were." 

Then  what  shall  we  read  when  we  see  a  piece  of 
sandstone  with  the  surface  all  curved  into  little 
ripples  like  those  upon  the  beach?    ''Oh,"  we  shall 


FOSSILS  219 

cry,  ''the  wind  blew  and  rippled  the  water  in  the  httle 
pool  on  the  beach  long,  long  ago."  Or  if  we  see  the 
pitted  marks  upon  the  sandstone,  we  think,  ''The 
falling  drops  made  these  in  the  days  when  there 
were  no  little  children  to  run  under  cover  to  get  away 
from  those  heavy  raindrops." 

Do  you  understand,  then,  why  the  rocks  form  a 
wonderful  book  of  knowledge?  They  write  for  us  the 
history  of  the  world  itself.  Men  write  for  us  the 
history  of  what  people  have  done  upon  the  earth ;  but 
the  rocks  tell  us  more  than  about  themselves,  they 
tell  us  what  plants  and  creatures  lived  upon  the 
world  before  we  came  here,  and  before  the  animals 
came  that  live  here  with  us  now. 

Would  you  like  to  know  how  the  rocks  tell  these 
things?  Then  think  of  the  sea  beach  with  all  the 
shells  buried  under  the  sand.  Think  of  the  sand  be- 
ing pressed  into  sandstone,  and  then  being  forced  up 
to  the  surface  of  the  earth ! 

Then  when  men  cut  into  the  sandstone,  and  take 
out  the  blocks,  what  do  they  find  there?  The  shapes 
of  the  perfect  shells !  The  shapes  of  things  that  really 
lived  on  this  world  in  those  long  ago  days  when  the 
world  looked  so  different  from  what  it  does  now.  Is 
not  that  like  reading  a  book,  —  a  book,  moreover,  that 
is  all  filled  with  pictures? 

Many  different  kinds  of  shells  are  found  pictured 
in  these  rocks,  and  not  one  of  them  is  shaped  just  like 
any  that  we  have  now.  There  were  coral  insects  in 
those  early  seas  building  their  branching  reefs.  Later 
there  were  starfishes  and  sea  urchins,  but  all  were 
different  from  those  that  are  now  in  existence. 


220     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

While  these  thousands  and  thousands  of  different 
shells  were  dropping  one  by  one  onto  the  floor  of  the 
ocean  and  being  cast  up  on  the  sea  beach,  there  was 
another  form  of  life  growing  in  the  vast  ocean,  a 
higher  form.  These  creatures  were  not  covered  with 
shells  as  were  all  those  which  had  lived  before.  They 
could  move  freely,  they  could  swim.  Can  you  think 
what  they  were? 

Fishes;  yes,  but  strange-looking  fishes,  not  at  all 
like  those  found  now  in  our  seas.  Most  of  them  had 
armor,  a  hard,  bony  armor  arranged  in  scales  like 
coat-of-mail,  and  having  these  for  protection  they 
grew  to  be  of  enormous  size.  The  whole  ocean  seemed 
to  be  full  of  them,  as  it  had  been  before  so  full  of  the 
shell-covered  animals. 

Do  you  ask,  ''How  do  we  know?"  Can  you  not 
guess  that  the  rocks  tell  us? 

There  the  fishes  are,  in  the  rocks;  caught  in  the  soft 
clay  and  mud  of  the  ocean  floor  when  they  died,  or 
cast  up  on  the  sea  beach  and  covered  by  the  sand. 
Such  extraordinary  looking  fishes  as  the  rocks  pic- 
ture to  us.  With  their  strong  armor,  something  like 
a  turtle's  shell,  and  their  huge  size,  we  wonder  how 
they  ever  moved  about'  in  the  sea. 

Gradually,  however,  there  was  a  change.  As  the 
ages  rolled  by  the  forms  of  the  fishes  became  more 
and  more  like  those  we  see.  For  the  world  changed, 
and  the  forms  of  the  animals  and  plants  changed  also 
to  accommodate  themselves  to  the  changing  world. 
The  rocks  that  were  formed  under  the  sea  in  that 
later  period  show  us  the  fishes  and  the  shells  as  they 
changed  and  grew  to  look  like  those  we  now  see. 


FOSSILS  221 

Such  a  wonderful  book  is  this  book  of  nature.  In 
it  we  may  read  the  record  of  the  past.  The  stones 
which  make  for  us  this  picture-book  bear  God's 
record  of  creation,  and  tell  the  wise  men  who  learn 
to  read  that  record  how  God  works  in  our  world. 
Shall  we  Hsten  to  what  has  thus  far  been  read  from 
their  stone  pages  printed  over  with  ripples  and  holes, 
with  shells  and  queer  fishes,  that  we  may  know  more 
about  God?  For  all  that  we  learn  of  God's  way  in 
nature  teaches  us  to  love  and  trust  Him  more. 


LESSON   27 
HOW  OUR   COAL  WAS   MADE 

MEMORY  VERSE 

Be  not  therefore  anxious,  saying,  What  shall  we  eat?  or.  What 
shall  we  drink?  or,  Wherewithal  shall  we  be  clothed?  for  your 
heavenly  Father  knoweth  that  ye  have  need  of  all  these  things. 

Mail.  6  :  31,  32 

The  Purpose 

A  lump  of  coal,  black  and  serviceable,  tells  us  a  re- 
markable story  of  how  the  poisonous  gases  that  covered 
the  earth  at  first  and  would  have  made  life  impossible 
were  absorbed  into  strange  forms  of  vegetation;  how 
these  were  buried  in  a  mass  under  rocks  for  ages;  and 
how  men  now  dig  the  mass  up  as  coal,  thus  using  what 
once  would  have  brought  death,  for  the  promotion  of  the 
fullest  life.  The  children  are  to  learn  this,  one  of  the 
strangest  stories  in  the  book  of  nature,  and  see  how  it 
bespeaks  a  Providence  that  works  on  long  lines  for  the 
welfare  of  all  the  children  of  earth,  and  turns  every- 
thing into  good.  It  is  this  age-long  preparation  of  earth 
by  God  who  knows  all  our  need  which  warrants  the  trust 
of  which  Jesus  spoke  when  he  said  to  his  followers,  *'Be 
not  anxious." 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

If  there  is  a  peat  bog  in  the  vicinity  or  a  deeply  wooded 
marsh  arrange  for  the  children  to  visit  it  and  show  them 
the  black  leaf  mould  that  has  been  accumulating  there. 

222 


HOW   OUR  COAL   WAS   MADE  223 

Tell  them  that  under  the  right  conditions  that  would 
also  make  coal.     They  may  like  to  learn  the  differences^ 
between  peat,  and  soft  and  hard  coal. 

The  teacher  should  try  to  get  as  vivid  a  mental  picture 
as  possible  of  the  coal-making  process  before  attempt- 
ing to  tell  of  this  interesting  phase  in  the  development 
of  the  world. 

The  lesson  of  trust  taught  by  this  story  and  the  words 
of  Jesus  in  the  memory  verse  will  have  value  only  as  the 
child  who  says  ''God  did  all  this  for  me"  learns  that 
every  child  of  earth  has  the  right  to  say  the  same  thing. 
It  is  another  emphasis  on  the  thought  of  living  together 
and  serving  one  another,  which  the  Beacon  Course  en- 
forces as  a  fundamental  principle  of  religion. 

Hand  Work 

Try  to  secure  thoughtful  answers  to  the  questions  about 
the  sort  of  thanks  we  may  give  for  earth's  bounty  and  our 
responsibility  in  sharing  it.  The  other  three  make  a  test 
of  the  pupil's  attention  to  the  lesson  story. 

OPENING   TALK 

Have  you  ever  seen  a  fossil  fern-leaf  on  a  stone?  (If 
possible,  secure  one  to  show  to  the  class.)  Can  you  tell 
how  it  came  there?  Would  you  like  to  hear  how  not 
only  leaves,  but  great  tree  trunks,  whole  forests,  were 
buried  in  the  earth,  and  what  use  we  now  make  of  them? 


HOW   OUR   COAL  WAS  MADE 

What  was  happening  on  the  surface  of  the  earth 
during  all  that  time  when  the  life  in  the  sea  was 
spreading  and  growing  and  being  pressed  between 
the  leaves  of  nature's  book?  Did  the  dry  land  re- 
main bare  and  lifeless? 

Oh,  no.  The  dawn  of  life  had  come  there  too,  at 
last.  Earth's  garment  was  beginning  to  creep  over 
the  rocks  and  to  cover  the  marshy  places  with 
green.  The  same  lowly  plants  that  start  to  clothe 
the  bare  rocks  now,  the  lichens  and  the  mosses, 
long  ages  ago  commenced  to  creep  over  those 
water- worn  rocks.  Tiny  ferns  began  to  tuck  their 
little  feet  into  the  cracks  and  crannies  of  the  cliffs. 
And  in  the  hollows,  where  the  waters  of  the  streams 
had  spread  out  with  their  load  of  pebbles  and  sand, 
rushes  sprang  up  and  made  a  mass  of  green. 

The  earth  and  the  air  were  warm  and  moist,  so 
that  these  new  forms  of  life  grew  and  increased  in 
number  and  in  size,  as  did  the  shells  and  the  fishes 
in  the  sea.  The  small  rushes  that  first  started  to 
grow  in  the  shallow  pools  changed  as  ages  rolled 
on,  so  that  by  the  time  the  large  fishes  swam  pon- 
derously about  in  the  cooling  seas  these  rushes  had 
grown  so  large  in  the  wet  clay  that  they  made  great 
dark  forests  of  tall,  strange-looking  trees  along  the 
margin  of  the  seashore. 

224 


HOW  OUR  COAL  WAS   MADE  225 

Think  of  our  common  horse  rushes,  slender  stalks, 
scarcely  ten  inches  high,  growing  as  trees  taller 
than  your  house  and  as  large  around  as  a  tub.  It  is 
difficult  to  imagine  how  they  would  look,  is  it  not? 

Do  you  know  the  club  moss  that  grows  upon  the 
mountains  and  the  ground-pine  that  is  twined  into 
wreaths  and  festoons  for  Christmas  decorations? 
Try  to  think  of  these  as  trees,  queer,  rough  trees, 
three  times  as  tall  as  your  house  and  as  large  around 
as  a  cartwheel.  The  thick,  bristling  branches  were 
covered  with  long  scales,  instead  of  leaves,  which 
dropped  off,  giving  place  to  new  ones,  as  the  pine 
needles  do. 

In  the  wet,  swampy  forest  land  ferns  grew  in  as 
pretty  clusters  as  they  do  in  our  swamps,  their 
graceful  fronds  almost  sweeping  the  surface  of  the 
shallow  water.  Some  of  the  ferns  were  very  small, 
with  dainty  little  fronds  that  were  almost  lost  in  the 
immensity  of  the  dark  forest.  Some  grew  so  large 
that  they  made  trees  like  the  tree  ferns  that  grow 
now  in  tropical  forests.  Like  the  tropical  ferns  they 
had  tall,  thick  trunks,  with  a  bunch  of  long  fronds 
drooping  from  the  top.  So  the  forests  stretched 
out,  dark  and  somber,  with  pools  of  still,  black 
water  lying  between  the  huge  trunks  of  the  trees, 
and  reflecting  in  the  dim  light  the  groups  of  pretty 
ferns. 

But  there  was  no  bright  green  grass  filling  in 
every  nook  and  corner  between  the  roots  of  the 
trees;  no  plants  covered  with  brightly  colored 
flowers,  no  fruits,  no  spreading  foliage.  Silent,  too, 
was  the  forest,  for  there  were  no  leaves  to  rustle. 


226     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

no  branches  to  sway,  no  chattering  squu*rels  to 
gather  the  nuts  that  fell  to  the  ground,  no  birds  to 
sing  and  fill  the  growing  world  with  joy.  Only  the 
hum  of  insects  broke  the  absolute  quiet  of  those 
long,  long  stretches  of  marshy  forest  land.  Big 
dragon  flies  skimmed  over  the  water  of  the  black 
pools,  and  locusts  flew  up  from  the  ground  with 
their  pecuUar  buzzing  sound. 

The  rain  still  fell  almost  continuously  and  the 
clouds  hung  low  over  the  young  world.  The  air, 
too,  was  heavy  over  the  thick,  dark  forests.  It  was 
not  like  the  clear,  fresh  air  that  we  breathe  with  its 
life-giving  oxygen.  Instead  it  was  full  of  carbonic 
acid  gas,  a  gas  which  plants  need  for  their  growth 
but  which  we  cannot  breathe  and  live.  The  long 
scales  of  those  early  trees  drank  from  the  air  that 
gas  which  would  have  been  a  poison  to  the  lungs  of 
animals  or  men.  But  to  the  trees  it  was  life  and 
strength,  and  they  grew  so  luxuriantly  that  no  others 
in  all  the  world  have  been  hke  them. 

With  their  roots  in  the  wet  earth  drinking  in  the 
water,  and  their  scales  breathing  in  the  heavy  gas- 
laden  atmosphere,  the  trees  of  the  mighty  forests 
grew  and  flourished.  They  flourished  for  so  long  a 
time  that  you  could  not  even  measure  it  in  your 
thoughts. 

The  long,  slender  scales  dropped  off  from  time  to 
time,  and  lay  decaying  in  the  water  of  the  swamp. 
The  great,  bristling  branches  dropped  away  as  the 
immense  trees  lifted  their  heads  higher  and  higher 
into  the  heavy  atmosphere,  moist  with  many  showers. 
The  ripened  spore  cases  scattered  about  their  thick, 


HOW   OUR  COAL  WAS   MADE  227 

brown,  powder-like  spores,  and  the  fronds  of  the 
ferns,  large  and  small,  dropped  down,  too,  into  the 
water.  The  trees  grew  old  and  died,  and,  falling, 
filled  the  swamp  with  their  great  decaying  trunks 
and  branches,  until  what  had  once  been  long  sheets 
of  water  became  thick,  oozy  marshlands  Uke  a 
bottomless  bog. 

Often  during  those  ages  in  which  the  forests  were 
growing  and  filling  in  the  pools  with  the  thick, 
black  mold,  the  sea  would  try  to  reclaim  a  part  of 
the  marshy  land,  and  make  it  into  a  strip  of  beach 
once  more.  The  waves  would  come  rolling  in,  bring- 
ing clay  and  sand  which  would  spread  over  the  sur- 
face of  the  marsh  and  cover  up  the  masses  of  branches 
and  stems  and  fern  fronds  that  lay  there.  If  the  sea 
held  its  sway  long  enough,  the  mighty  trees  would 
finally  die  and,  falling,  be  covered  by  the  burden  of 
sand  each  rolling  w^ave  brought  in,  until  all  evidences 
of  a  forest  would  be  gone,  —  buried  far  beneath  the 
waves  of  the  victorious  sea. 

In  time,  however,  the  sea  would  build  a  barrier 
even  against  itself,  so  that  the  waves  could  no  longer 
roll  in  over  the  higher  beach,  and  cover  the  swamps 
with  sand  and  clay.  Then  the  rain  and  river  water 
again  collected  behind  the  high  beaches,  again 
made  swamps  in  which  trees  and  ferns  commenced 
to  grow.  So  in  time  there  was  another  immense 
forest  growing  upon  the  clay  and  sand  that  had 
covered  up  the  older  one.  In  some  places  the  ocean 
overthrew  and  buried  many  forests,  one  after  an- 
other, before  it  was  finally  conquered  and  the  land 
along  the  seashore  rose  and  became  dry  ground. 


228    THE   EARTH   jMADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

Do  you  feel  sorry  that  those  great,  silent  forests 
were  caught  and  overwhelmed  by  the  floods  and  by 
the  ocean  tides?  Do  you  wish  that  there  might  be 
such  wonderful  forests  growing  now  and  that  you 
might  see  them? 

That  could  never  be,  for  the  trees  of  those  im- 
mense forests  could  not  live  in  the  air  you  breathe. 
They  grew  until  they  had  used  up  the  carbonic  acid 
gas  that  so  filled  the  moist,  heavy  air  in  those  early 
days.  When  that  was  used  up  and  they  could  grow 
no  longer,  they  gave  place  to  new  kinds  of  trees 
more  suited  to  the  different  air,  and  more  like  those 
we  know. 

But  the  carbon  was  not  really  lost,  although  the 
great  trees  had  taken  it  out  of  the  air.  None  of  those 
elements  of  which  the  world  is  made  are  ever  lost. 
They  are  used  over  and  over  again,  but  always  kept 
in  some  form.  Are  not  the  pieces  of  the  old  rocks 
made  into  new?  Are  not  new  rocks  made  also  from 
the  cast  off  and  broken  shells  of  the  countless  little 
animals  of  the  sea?  The  carbon,  too,  that  was  once 
in  the  air  in  the  form  of  a  heavy  gas  has  been  saved 
from  that  day  to  this. 

But  how?  Those  mighty  forests  were  no  longer 
there.  They  had  been  buried  so  deep  under  sand 
and  clay  that  no  trace  of  them  was  left.  Yet  they 
were  never  lost  to  God's  sight  or  to  His  purposes. 
They  had  only  entered  the  wonderful  underground 
workshop  where  God's  forces  are  making  over  into 
new  forms  substances  that  have  done  their  work  in 
another. 

Deep  under  the  ground  the  same  pressure  was  at 


HOW  OUR  COAL  WAS   MADE  229 

work  upon  that  thick,  black,  oozy  marsh,  full  of  the 
fern  fronds  and  the  scales,  the  branches  and  the 
tree  trunks  that  had  fallen  into  it.  Then  the  marsh 
was  changed  into  a  black,  shiny  mass  of  rock  in 
which  was  stored  the  carbon  that  the  leaves  and 
trunks  of  those  immense  trees  had  breathed  in  from 
the  heavy  air. 

Can  you  guess  the  name  of  this  black  rock?  Yes, 
it  is  coal.  In  the  underground  storehouse  the  car- 
bon that  was  not  needed  by  the  growing  world  was 
packed  away  and  saved  to  be  given  back  to  the  world 
again  m  a  form  it  did  need.  For  the  carbon  that 
would  have  poisoned  us,  had  we  breathed  it  in  that 
heavy  atmosphere,  could  be  used  for  giving  warmth 
when  the  world  was  getting  cold.  In  such  wonder- 
ful ways  does  God  provide  for  all  His  children. 

When  the  pressure  upon  the  buried  marsh  turned 
the  black  soil  into  rock,  the  clay  and  sand  below  the 
swamp,  and  that  with  which  the  waves  had  covered 
it,  were  changed  into  rock  also.  These  rocks,  too, 
became  a  part  of  nature's  book,  for  they  were 
changed  into  slate  and  sandstone  and  they  have  pre- 
served for  us  the  record  of  what  grew  in  that  ancient 
marsh.  In  many  a  strange  and  beautiful  way  they 
show  us  what  sort  of  plants  and  trees  those  were 
which  made  our  coal. 

Underneath  the  black  coal,  standing  upright  in 
the  slate  that  had  once  been  clay,  are  trunks  of  trees 
all  turned  to  stone,  with  long  roots  stretching  through 
the  mass  of  rock.  While  above  the  coal,  between  it 
and  the  layers  of  the  slate,  are  the  forms  of  delicate 
little  ferns,  of  large  fronds  and  of  the  scale-covered 


230     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR   MAN 

branches.  Even  the  dragon  flies  and  locusts  were 
caught  and  pressed;  for  when  anything  fell  from  the 
forest  upon  the  soft  clay  that  the  sea  had  brought 
in,  it  was  pressed  closely  and  preserved. 

In  the  layers  of  slate  or  shale  above  the  coal 
there  have  been  found  more  kinds  of  ferns  than  we 
now  have.  The  shapes  of  many  of  them  are  so  per- 
fect that  it  seems  as  if  the  most  careful  fingers  had 
smoothed  out  the  delicate  fronds  and  pressed  them 
between  the  leaves  of  a  book. 

Shall  we  not  sing  a  song  of  praise  to  the  Creator 
who  has  kept  for  our  use  in  the  beautiful  marble  the 
excess  of  carbon  taken  from  the  water,  and  in  the 
useful  coal,  the  carbon  taken  from  the  air?  Who 
has  also  preserved  the  forms  of  the  shells  and  plants 
that  made  the  marble  and  the  coal,  so  that  we  may 
now  see  and  know  in  what  a  wonderful  way  they 
were  made. 


LESSON   28 
MORE  WONDERS  FROM   NATURE^S  BOOK 

MEMORY  VERSE 

A  thousand  ages  in  thy  sight 

Are  Hke  an  evening  gone, 
Short  as  the  watch  that  ends  the  night 

Before  the  rising  sun. 

Isaac  Watts 

The  Purpose 

The  rocks  themselves  tell  us  by  what  gradual  and 
age-long  steps  God  has  been  accomplishing  His  purpose 
in  the  world.  They  give  a  picture  of  change  and  growth, 
of  that  ''increasing  purpose"  which  runs  through  the 
ages. 

With  even  the  slighest  knowledge  of  the  growth  of  the 
world  the  feeling  of  God's  constant  presence  should  grow 
and  deepen  in  the  child's  consciousness. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

Any  fossils  that  can  be  used  in  these  lessons  should  be 
shown.  Those  children  who  live  in  the  Connecticut 
valley  where  the  red  sandstone  out-crops  should  have  an 
opportunity  to  see  the  remarkable  footprints  in  the 
rocks.  Fossil  remains  of  trilobites  and  other  early  forms 
are  found  in  the  rocks  in  northeastern  Iowa.  Use  what- 
ever can  be  found  in  your  own  locality,  or  any  specimens 
or  pictures  you  can  secure  for  illustrations. 

Adaptation  to  environment  and  the  fulfilling  of  God's 
231 


232    THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

laws  is  exemplified  by  the  continuous  life  of  the  ant  upon 
the  world  for  long,  long  ages  of  time,  while  other  animals 
have  died  off  or  changed. 

The  hymn  on  the  leaflet  expresses  a  profound  religious 
sentiment.  Have  the  pupils  learn  at  least  the  verse 
from  it  given  with  this  lesson,  or  better,  the  whole. 


OPENING   TALK 

Suppose  that  you  should  be  digging  sand  upon  the 
seashore  and  that  you  stayed  so  long  do\^Ti  by  the  water 
that  rain  began  to  fall  and  a  high  wave  surprised  you, 
how  quickly  you  would  jump  up  and  run  to  a  place  of 
safety,  leaving  your  footprints  on  the  wet  beach,  and 
your  pail  and  shovel  just  where  they  were.  If  the  waves 
of  the  incoming  tide  should  be  full  of  sand,  your  aluniinum 
pail  and  shovel  would  be  hidden  from  sight  before  the 
tide  went  out,  and  you  would  never  get  them  again. 

Long,  long  ages  afterward,  some  one  might  find  your 
pail  and  shovel  and  your  footprints  in  some  sandstone 
that  was  being  quarried  for  a  building.  Then  he  would 
know  that  a  child  had  been  playing  ages  before  on  the 
beach  where  the  sandstone  had  been  made. 

Now  you  shall  hear  how  animal  footprints  and  other 
marks  were  left  in  the  sand  and  made  into  stone  ages 
ago,  long  before  there  were  any  people  in  the  world. 


MORE  WONDERS  FROM  NATURE'S  BOOK 

After  those  great  forests  had  done  their  work  by 
clearing  the  atmosphere  of  its  burden  of  carbon,  a 
great  change  came.  The  sun  began  to  shine  through 
the  clouds;  not  peep  through  with  a  soft  glimmer- 
ing light,  but  shine  directly  through,  with  rays  so 
bright  that  they  would  make  a  shadow. 

Then  all  the  living  things  upon  the  whole  world 
changed.  Some  kinds  of  the  giant  trees  died  out  and 
were  seen  no  more.  Other  kinds  became  smaller  and 
smaller  from  age  to  age  until  they  dwindled  down  to 
the  size  of  our  queer  little  horse-tail  rush  and  our 
ground-pine.  New  trees  of  a  different  kind  com- 
menced to  grow  on  the  higher  ground,  and  the  sun 
caused  them  to  flourish  and  to  spread.  Among  these 
were  the  conifers  or  cone-bearers,  the  first  of  the 
group  of  trees  to  which  our  pines  and  hemlocks 
belong. 

The  animal  life,  too,  was  changing,  for  the  air  was 
now  fit  to  breathe.  Out  of  the  water  came  the  queer- 
est-looking creatures  that  you  could  ever  imagine. 
They  were  the  amphibians;  that  is,  animals  that 
could  live  either  on  the  land  or  in  the  water.  You 
remember  how  the  little  tadpoles,  after  they  are 
hatched  from  the  eggs,  live  in  the  water  almost  like 
fishes,  and  how,  when*  their  legs  grow  and  their  tails 
shrink  away,  they  leave  the  water  and  hop  out  on  the 

233 


234     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

land.  Well,  away  back  in  those  times  when  the  giant 
trees  grew,  these  creatures  commenced  to  walk  out 
of  the  water  and  onto  the  seashore.  They  were  the 
same  kind  of  animals  as  the  frogs,  and  they  could  live, 
too,  in  the  water  or  on  the  land,  but  they  were  as 
much  larger  than  toads  or  frogs  as  you  can  think  or 
imagine.  Sometimes  they  walked  on  the  sea  beach 
and  left  their  great  footprints  in  the  wet  sand  and 
mud. 

And  what  do  you  suppose  happened  to  those  foot- 
prints? They  were  preserved  for  us  in  the  sandstone, 
and  now  make  some  of  the  pictures  in  nature's  book 
of  the  rocks. 

Sometimes  in  among  the  footprints  there  are  rain- 
drop marks  —  big  ones  —  showing  that  there  was  a 
hard  shower  with  great,  heavy  drops.  But  the  queer 
animals  did  not  care.  They  could  live  in  the  water 
if  they  chose,  so  they  walked  right  along  and  did  not 
try  to  get  under  cover. 

Sometimes  in  the  slate  that  used  to  be  the  muddy 
flats  of  those  days  there  are  marks  that  we  call  sun 
cracks.  Have  you  ever  noticed  those  queer  cracks 
on  the  surface  of  dried  mud?  The  same  shaped 
cracks  were  made  in  the  drying  mud  long  ago,  and 
when  we  see  them  in  the  rock  we  know  that  the  sun 
came  out  bright  and  hot,  and  dried  the  mud  quickly. 

After  the  amphibians  had  had  their  rule  in  the 
water  and  on  the  land,  reptiles  came,  —  the  strange, 
huge  lizards  that  would  make  even  the  dragons  of 
fairy  tales  seem  quite  ordinary.  These  reptiles  lived 
by  the  side  of  the  marshes  and  walked  about  on  the 
exposed  mud  flats.    They  may  have  gone  down  at 


WONDERS   FROM   NATURE'S   BOOK       235 

low  tide  to  get  theii'  food  from  among  the  seaweed, 
or  to  catch  some  of  the  smaller  fish.  Of  com-se  we  do 
not  know  just  why  they  walked  about  upon  the  shore, 
but  we  know  that  they  did  walk  there,  for  they,  too, 
left  their  footprints.  They  went  lumbering  along, 
some  of  them  w^alking  on  four  feet,  some  of  them 
walking  on  two  with  a  pair  of  shorter  forelegs  to  rest 
on,  and  dragging  long  tails  after  them,  much  as  a 
kangaroo  does.  They  left  their  tracks  upon  the  sand 
and  mud  they  walked  on,  and  these  were  preserved 
so  that  we  see  them  many,  many  years  afterwards. 

Many  of  their  bones  have  been  found,  too,  and 
so  we  have  been  able  to  picture  to  ourselves  how 
these  monstrous  creatures  looked.  It  was  when 
they  ventured  out  too  far  upon  the  soft  mud  that 
they  were  caught  in  it,  for  how  could  they  pull 
their  huge  feet  out  from  the  soft,  sticky  mass? 
Then  the  mud  hardened  into  rock,  and  their  bones 
were  preserved.  Whole  skeletons  have  been  found 
and  set  up  in  museums,  so  we  have  these,  as  well 
as  the  footprints^in  the  rocks,  to  tell  us  what  huge 
creatures  lived  upon  the  earth  when  it  was  still 
young. 

Not  only  those  great  footprints  but  even  the  tiny 
tracks  of  insects  are  perfectly  preserved  in  the  rocks 
that  were  once  mud.  There  were  many  insects  then, 
grasshoppers,  dragon  flies,  beetles  and  spiders.  Some 
of  them  walked  along  on  the  fine,  damp  mud  and  left 
their  tracks  and  often  they,  too,  were  caught  where 
the  mud  was  too  soft.  Their  feet  were  small  enough, 
but  they  had  so  many  that  while  they  were  pulling 
out  a  pair  of  feet  all  the  others  would  be  hopelessly 


236    THE  EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

caught.  So  we  have  their  tracks  and  their  bodies  all 
nicely  preserved  for  us  in  nature's  book. 

By  the  leaves  and  pictures  of  this  marvelous  book 
we  can  tell  how  the  earth  went  on  changing  and 
growing;  for  learned  men  who  love  nature  have 
studied  the  rocks,  to  read  what  is  told  there.  They 
have  put  together  the  huge  bones  there  preserved 
and  so  can  tell  us  what  those  strange  animals  looked 
like  and  what  kind  of  feet  made  those  tracks. 

They  tell  us  also  that  strange  birds  came  which  at 
first  looked  like  winged  and  feathered  lizards,  but 
which  changed  from  age  to  age  until  they  became  the 
birds  we  know  and  love  so  well. 

There  were  other  creatures  of  the  bird  family, 
something  like  ostriches.  They  walked  about  on 
the  land,  being  quite  too  heavy  to  fly.  Queer  foot- 
prints they  have  left.  Men  find  also  the  fossil  forms 
of  great  bats,  six  times  the  size  of  ours,  and  of  enor- 
mous turtles  and  crocodiles.  Even  flies  and  ants  have 
been  preserved  from  that  early  time.  Only  think 
how  much  longer  ants  have  been  living  on  the  world 
than  human  beings.  When  next  you  see  an  ant,  stop 
and  think  how  long  its  kind  has  lived  upon  the  earth. 
Many  of  the  other  creatures  were  too  large  and  too 
clumsy  to  adapt  themselves  to  the  changing  world. 
So  the  large  creatures  died  off  and  gave  place  to 
smaller  ones.  The  amphibians,  that  were  once  as 
large  as  alligators  have  changed  and  become  in  time 
the  frogs  and  toads  that  we  see;  while  the  reptiles 
that  were  so  extraordinary  in  their  size  and  shape 
have  changed  also,  adapting  themselves  to  the 
changing  world  until  they  have  become  the  turtles, 


WONDERS   FROM   NATURE'S   BOOK       237 

lizards,  snakes,  alligators  and  crocodiles  of  our 
time. 

The  world  was  all  this  time  getting  ready  for  a  new 
form  of  life.  Man  was  coming,  and  his  four-footed 
friends  were  coming;  and  many  changes  must  still 
take  place  before  the  world  could  be  a  home  for 
them. 

With  the  sun  shining  brightly  between  the  clouds, 
the  seasons  came.  There  could  have  been  no  summer 
or  winter  when  the  thick  clouds  hung  so  heavily 
about  the  world.  They  kept  the  atmosphere  close 
and  warm  like  that  in  a  greenhouse;  and  strange  as 
it  may  seem,  those  immense  trees  that  made  the  first 
coal  tell  us  that  there  were  no  seasons  then.  For  there 
are  no  rings  in  their  fossil  trunks  to  show  any  signs 
of  yearly  growth.  But  the  later  rocks  that  show  us 
sun  cracks,  show  us  tree  trunks  with  annual  rings 
like  those  our  trees  now  have.  We  know  that  there 
was  summer  and  winter  then  in  the  temperate  zones, 
because  the  trees  of  that  time  grew  for  half  of  the 
year  and  rested  the  other  half. 

So,  with  a  change  of  climate  trees  like  ours  com- 
menced to  grow.  Besides  those  early  conifers,  the 
oaks,  maples,  elms,  and  willows,  the  walnut  and  the 
sassafras  trees  began  to  clothe  the  earth  with  their 
graceful,  swaying  branches  and  fluttering  leaves. 

Then  the  flowers  came.  They  did  not  at  first  have 
all  the  lovely  colors  that  we  now  see.  They  were 
green  in  color,  like  the  leaves. 

Do  you  remember  what  has  helped  so  much  to  de- 
velop the  bright  colors  of  the  wild  flowers?  Yes,  it 
was  the  bees.     It  should  not  seem  strange,  then, 


238    THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR   MAN 

should  it,  that  those  same  pages  of  nature's  book 
that  show  us  the  flowering  plants  should  show  us 
bees? 

With  trees  like  our  trees  and  flowering  plants  be- 
ginning to  be  like  ours,  the  world  commenced  at  last, 
after  so  many  countless  years,  to  look  much  like  the 
world  as  we  see  it.  There  were  shells  like  ours  washed 
up  on  the  beaches,  fishes  like  ours  swam  in  the  sea 
and  in  the  rivers.  Smaller  dragon  flies  skimmed  over 
the  water,  butterflies  fluttered  over  the  blossoms, 
sipping  their  nectar,  while  bees  gathered  the  pollen. 
The  ants  were  there,  and  June  bugs,  and  many  more 
of  the  insects  that  we  know.  And  all,  the  leaves  of 
the  trees,  the  flowering  plants,  the  insects,  as  well  as 
the  shells  and  the  fishes  and  the  bones  of  animals  are 
pictured  for  us  in  that  wonderful  book  which  has 
earth's  rocks  for  its  pages. 

Throughout  those  countless  ages  of  change  and 
growth  God  watched  over  the  world  and  blessed  it 
with  His  love  and  thought.  When  there  was  no  hu- 
man mind  to  observe  what  was  going  on,  everything 
was  working  together  in  the  love  and  harmony  of 
God's  perfect  law. 


LESSON   29 

THE   STORY  THAT  A   SCRATCHED 
ROCK  TELLS 


MEMORY  VERSE 

Speak  to  the  earth,  and  it  shall  teach  thee. 

Job  12:8 

The  Purpose 

This  last  great  change  in  the  world  before  man  came 
is  of  special  interest  because  to  it  is  due  the  contour  of 
the  land  in  the  greater  part  of  North  America  and  Europe. 
Wherever  the  great  ice  sheet  plougjied  its  way  it  left  a 
changed  world. 

It  altered  river  systems,  caused  waterfalls,  left  lakes 
scattered  here  and  there,  spread  out  wide  plains,  lowered 
mountains  and  raised  valleys.  To  that  ice  sheet  mankind 
owes  all  that  has  made  the  north  temperate  zone  the 
fitting  home  for  his  onward  struggle  in  civilization. 

Use  the  story  to  illustrate  how  the  earth  may  indeed 
speak  to  us  of  the  wonderful  things  God  has  done. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

This  lesson  offers  excellent  opportunity  for  review  of  the 
last  three,  which  deal  with  diiTerent  sorts  of  rocks  and  call 
them  nature's  story-book.  Here  we  have  one  of  those 
stories  for  the  lesson. 

The  glacial  scratches,  the  smoothed  rocks  and  hills 
and  the  ''mantle  rock"  that  was  left  every  where  by  the 

239 


240    THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

melting  ice  form  the  last  page  in  nature's  book  before  the 
advent  of  man. 

The  children  should  be  well  impressed  with  the  idea 
that  the  world  is  still  changing,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that 
the  changes  are  so  slow  that  we  do  not  realize  them. 

We  are  still  in  the  Glacial  Age.  That  our  chmate  is 
growing  warmer  is  proved  by  the  fact  that  the  last  rem- 
nants of  the  great  ice  sheet  are  gradually  retreating,  but 
we  are  insensible  of  any  change  ourselves. 

Impress  upon  the  children's  minds,  as  always,  the 
countless  ages  which  have  elapsed  while  this  last  change 
was  going  on,  causing  the  earth  to  be  plowed  over  and 
adapted  for  God's  highest  creation,  man. 

OPENING   TALK 

Can  you  think  away  the  thick  masses  of  ice  and  snow 
that  cover  Greenland,  and  picture  that  island  as  covered 
with  a  luxuriant  forest? 

Can  you  forget  for  a  moment  the  stories  you  have 
read  about  the  Eskimo  hunting  over  frozen  seas  for  the 
walrus  and  the  polar  bear,  and  think  instead  of  soft, 
blue,  tropical  seas  like  those  around  Bermuda,  where 
white  coral  reefs  gleam  beneath  the  surface  of  the  water? 

Try,  while  we  have  the  story;  for  then  you  will  know 
why  it  once  deserved  the  name  Greenland,  and  how  it 
came  to  be  the  land  of  snow  and  ice  that  it  is  now. 


THE   STORY  THAT  A  SCRATCHED 
ROCK  TELLS 

How  many  of  you  have  read  about  the  Eskimo 
children  and  that  singular  land  of  ice  and  snow  in 
which  they  live?  It  is  called  Greenland,  though  it 
is  far  from  being  a  green  land  now.  Yet  it  is  quite 
true  that  Greenland  had  once  as  warm  a  climate 
as  the  island  of  Cuba  has  now. 

It  seems  very  hard  to  believe,  yet  the  pages  of 
nature's  book  tell  us  that  it  was  so.  The  rocks  of 
Greenland,  where  the  snow  has  left  them  uncovered, 
tell  us  strange  stories  of  what  once  grew  upon  that 
land  now  buried  under  snow  and  ice. 

Did  you  ever  learn  about  the  coral  polyps  and  the 
work  they  do,  making  great  coral  reefs  in  the  warm 
southern  seas?  Once  they  built  in  the  warm  seas 
that  were  then  about  Greenland.  On  the  land  great 
palms  lifted  their  feathery  tops  high  in  the  air. 
Ferns  of  all  kinds  made  the  ground  green  with  their 
graceful  fronds,  while  Sequoia  trees,  like  the  giant 
trees  of  California,  towered  above  such  other  trop- 
ical trees  as  the  fig,  the  ilex  and  the  magnolia. 

For  ages  and  ages  Greenland  was  like  a  luxiu-iant, 
tropical  island.  But  there  came  a  time  when  all 
that  was  changed.  It  was  after  the  ''coming  of  the 
seasons." 

At  first  the  difference  between  summer  and  winter 

241 


242     THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR    MAN 

was  not  great,  but  the  winters  grew  colder  and  colder. 
In  time  they  became  so  severe  that  even  the  summer 
sun  was  not  hot  enough  to  melt  away  all  the  snow 
that  had  accumulated  during  the  long,  cold  winters. 

First  the  mountains  became  snow-capped.  Then, 
as  the  cold  grew  more  intense,  the  snow  caps  grew 
until  great  bodies  of  ice  commenced  to  flow  down  the 
mountain  sides  and  into  the  valleys.  Rivers  of  ice 
these  were,  not  rivers  of  water  which  had  been  frozen 
into  ice,  but  rivers  composed  of  ice,  which  flowed 
down  the  mountain  sides  with  a  great  force. 

There  are  a  few  such  ice  rivers  still  left  upon  the 
world.  We  call  them  glaciers.  They  are  not  at  first 
rivers  of  solid  ice;  they  start  as  rivers  of  snow,  that 
kind  of  hard,  icy  snow  that  we  see  left  on  the  ground 
in  the  spring.  They  are  pushed  on  with  such  a  force, 
however,  that  the  icy  snow  is  soon  pressed  into  a 
compact  mass  of  ice  which  really  flows  slowly  along 
over  the  ground,  scouring  for  itself  a  bed  out  of  the 
solid  rock. 

If  you  take  up  a  handful  of  snow  and  press  it  hard, 
you  will  soon  have  a  ball  of  ice  instead  of  a  snow- 
ball. So  the  enormous  pressure  of  the  snow  accumu- 
lating above,  forces  the  icy  snow  out  from  beneath, 
and  then  presses  that  into  ice  as  it  slowly  creeps 
down  the  mountain  side. 

You  remember  what  a  power  snow  has  to  stop  a 
railroad  train.  Yet  when  snow  moves  as  it  does  in 
a  glacier  its  power  is  much  more  tremendous,  for 
then  nothing  can  stop  it.  It  pushes  everything  out 
of  its  way,  and  grinds  rocks  to  powder. 

Think  what  a  mighty  force  a  sheet  of  ice  half  a 


STORY  A  SCRATCHED   ROCK  TELLS     243 

mile  thick  must  exert  when  it  moves  over  a  whole 
country  as  it  does  in  Greenland.  So  long  as  the 
snow  accumulates  faster  than  it  melts,  nothing,  not 
even  mountains,  can  stop  the  ice  sheet  thus  formed 
as  it  slowly  moves  over  the  surface  of  the  land  to 
the  sea. 

Sucli  a  glacier  as  that  once  passed  over  the  north- 
ern part  of  our  country.  In  places  it  was  a  mile 
thick,  and  it  covered  such  high  mountains  as  Mount 
Washington  and  the  Adirondacks. 

If  you  ask  how  we  know  about  such  a  strange 
thing  as  this,  we  answer  as  we  have  answered  so 
many  times  before,  ''Because  the  rocks  tell  us;" 
not  from  their  structure  or  from  the  fossils  they  en- 
close, but  from  the  marks  upon  their  surface.  For 
they  are  smoothed  over  as  if  a  mighty  force  had 
been  at  work  upon  them,  and  often  those  smooth 
places  are  scratched  with  straight  parallel  lines  and 
grooves. 

''What  sort  of  writing  has  nature  made  upon 
these  rocks?"  men  have  asked.  "Why  should  the 
rocks  north  of  a  certain  line  be  so  smooth,  with  long 
parallel  scratches  upon  them,  while  those  south  of 
that  line  are  just  as  the  rain-water  has  left  them?" 

So  people  wondered,  until  a  great  man  named 
Louis  Agassiz,  who  came  to  America  from  Switzer- 
land, showed  us  how  to  read  this  part  of  nature's 
writing. 

He  had  seen  glaciers  at  work  in  his  native  coun- 
try, for  there  are  many  of  these  rivers  of  ice  among 
the  high  Alps,  and  he  had  vvatched  them  carefully. 
He  had  noticed  the  strange  appearance  of  the  rocks 


2U    THE  EARTH  MADE  READY  FOR  MAN 

wherever  the  ice  in  melting  had  left  them  bare. 
They  were  smoothed  off  and  almost  polished,  while 
deep  scratches  ran  parallel  to  the  direction  in  which 
the  glaciers  were  moving.  So  when  he  came  to  this 
country  he  knew  what  those  marks  meant  which 
had  puzzled  our  learned  men. 

Glaciers  had  made  the  marks,  —  glaciers  of  such 
extent  that  they  stretched  in  one  mass  of  ice  across 
the  northern  part  of  North  America.  As  high  upon 
the  mountain  sides  as  the  rocks  were  ground  off, 
so  thick  was  the  ice  that  had  flowed  over  the  land. 
It  had  scoured  off  all  the  rocks  on  its  way  toward 
the  south,  and  carved  them  with  straight  lines  and 
grooves. 

What  do  you  suppose  were  nature's  carving 
tools?  They  were  the  pieces  of  rock  that  had  been 
broken  off  the  ledges  as  the  mighty  glacier  pushed 
its  way  irresistibly  over  the  land.  Frozen  into  the' 
mass,  they  were  held  as  tight  as  in  a  vise.  Thus  they 
traveled  with  the  moving  ice,  scraping  the  rocks 
smooth  while  the  harder,  sharper  fragments  scratched 
parallel  Hues  on  the  surfaces  that  had  been  already 
bared  and  smoothed.  Such  records  do  the  glaciers 
leave  now  upon  the  rocks  in  the  Alps,  in  Green- 
land and  in  Alaska.  Such  records  the  glaciers  have 
left  upon  the  rocks  in  the  northern  part  of  North 
America  and  Europe. 

Nature  has  many  other  ways  of  telling  us  about 
the  "Great  Ice  Age"  besides  the  telltale  lines  and 
the  smooth  rocks.  She  tells  us  by  the  changed 
shapes  of  the  mountains,  by  the  filled-up  valleys, 
by  long,  even  ridges  and  rounded  hills,  and  by  the 


STORY  A   SCRATCHED   ROCK  TELLS     245 

great  stretches  of  land  covered  with  gravel  and  sand 
and  boulders.  These  the  great  ice  sheet  left  scat- 
tered about  over  the  ground  when  it  finally  melted 
and  retreated  toward  the  north. 

Although  nothing  upon  the  earth's  surface  could 
stop  a  great  glacier,  the  sun's  rays  could.  So,  when 
the  climate  became  warmer,  the  vast  ice  sheet  melted 
into  rivers  of  water  and  gradually  shrank  away 
until  now  only  a  few  mountain  glaciers,  those  of  the 
Alps  and  Rockies,  and  those  in  the  polar  regions, 
are  left. 

In  Switzerland  rivers  of  water  come  pouring  out 
of  the  end  of  the  melting  glacier.  So  in  our  country 
long  ago  rivers  must  have  poured  out  all  along  the 
southern  margin  of  the  ice-sheet  as  it  gradually 
melted  away.  Here  and  there  vast  beds  of  gravel 
and  sand  were  spread  out  by  these  gushing  waters; 
here  and  there  huge  boulders  that  had  been  carried 
under,  in,  or  upon  the  ice  were  dropped  and  left, 
sometimes  piled  up  in  strange  confusion. 

When  at  last  our  country  was  free  from  its  ice 
chains,  and  the  rushing  waters  that  had  carried  the 
melting  ice  to  the  sea  had  finally  subsided,  what  a 
changed  surface  was  laid  bare!  The  sharp  peaks  of 
the  mountains  had  been  rounded  over,  and  smooth, 
round  hills  of  clay  were  scattered  about  where  no 
hills  had  been  before.  Plateaus  of  sand  stood  high 
above  the  level  plains.  Long  even  ridges  of  gravel 
stretched  along  like  artificial  embankments,  while 
thick  sheets  of  gravel  were  spread  over  great  tracts  of 
land,  often  blocking  up  the  river  channels  and  dam- 
ming back  the  rushing  water  into  beautiful  lakes. 


246    THE   EARTH   MADE   READY   FOR  MAN 

Although  the  ice  had  plowed  through  the  forests 
and  ground  them  to  powder  as  it  advanced,  when 
it  had  retreated  the  land  was  not  so  desolate  as 
one  would  think.  It  did  not  leave  the  rocks  wholly 
bare,  but  it  covered  them  as  it  melted  with  the 
gravel  and  sand,  as  with  a  mantle.  So  the  little 
flowers  that  follow  the  melting  ice  and  grow  up  to 
its  very  edge  had  soil  to  grow  upon.  So  did  the  trees 
and  the  other  Alpine  plants,  as  they  slowly  ad- 
vanced, following  the  retreating  ice  sheet. 

It  took  very,  very  long  for  all  this  to  happen, 
but  by  the  time  the  warmer  climate  had  locked  the 
ice  sheet  up  in  the  polar  regions,  our  country  was 
clothed  again  with  forests  and  ferns,  with  shrubs 
and  plants  of  more  varieties  than  had  ever  grown 
before.  Animals,  birds  and  insects  came  again  to 
inhabit  the  land,  and  most  of  these,  too,  were  different 
from  any  that  had  formerly  lived  here.  These  ani- 
mals are  those  that  we  know  as  man's  four-footed 
friends.     And  with  the  animals  came  man. 

To  what  a  world  the  human  race  came  at  last! 
What  a  storehouse  of  riches,  what  a  place  of  beauty, 
what  a  land  of  resources  was  this  world  that  God 
had  prepared  to  be  our  home.  As  marvelous  as  the 
riches  which  God  has  stored  away  for  us,  or  as  the 
beauty  with  which  He  has  covered  the  earth,  or  as 
the  bounties  which  He  has  scattered  aboard,  are 
the  records  which  He  has  left  on  the  rocks  of  the 
world  so  that  we  may  learn  in  what  divine,  wonder- 
ful ways  those  gifts  which  we  see  and  use  were  pre- 
pared for  us. 


PART  IV 

The  Coming  of  Man 


Thou  hast  made  him  but  Httle  lower  than  God, 
And  crownest  him  with  glory  and  honor. 

Ps.  8:5 


LESSON   30 
MAN   COMES  UPON  THE  EARTH 

MEMORY  VERSE 

Who  knoweth  not  in  all  these, 
That  the  hand  of  the  Lord  hath  wrought  this, 
In  whose  hand  is  the  soul  of  every  living  thing, 
And  the  breath  of  all  mankind? 

Job  12:9,  10 

The  Purpose 

There  has  been  no  attempt  in  this  lesson  to  make  any 
scientific  statement  as  to  how  man  came  upon  the  earth, 
or  just  when  and  where  human  beings  appeared.  In  as 
simple  and  straightforward  a  way  as  possible  with  such  a 
complex  subject  the  children  are  told  of  man's  humble 
origin,  the  slow  steps  of  his  progress,  and  the  means  by 
which  it  was  achieved. 

The  purpose  is  steadily  held  to  make  clear  at  the  same 
time  the  endowments  which  place  man  above  the  lower 
animals,  and  the  spiritual  inheritance  which  reveals 
itself  in  his  worship  and  his  steady  advance. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

The  teacher  should  study  all  the  lessons  of  Part  4 
before  undertaking  to  teach  any  of  them.  With  a  clear 
picture  in  mind  of  the  growth  of  the  human  race  in  civil- 
ization it  will  be  possible  to  make  a  far  more  vivid  pres- 
entation to  the  children. 

If  the  teacher  can  succeed  in  making  those  earliest 
249 


250  THE  COMING   OF  MAN 

days  when  man  was  just  beginning  to  grope  his  way 
into  consciousness  seem  real  to  the  children,  the  purpose 
of  the  story  will  not  be  lost. 

The  rehgious  thought  running  through  all  these  lessons, 
that  God  is  with  us  continually  and  leads  us  on  to  all 
that  we  accomplish,  should  never  be  lost  from  sight. 
The  opening  talk  suggests  it  as  the  atmosphere  in  which 
the  story  of  this  lesson  should  be  given  and  received. 

Hand  Work. 

'To  prepare  the  pupils  to  do  the  work  asked  for  on  the 
leaflet  it  will  be  well  to  talk  a  little  about  the  two  subjects 
in  class.  Encourage  original  expression,  and  ask  to  have 
the  work  brought  next  Sunday  to  be  read  in  class. 

OPENING   TALK 

Do  any  of  you  know  those  lines  named  ''Baby," 
written  by  George  MacDonald?  (The  teacher  may  well 
read  the  poem  to  the  class.  It  will  be  found  in  many 
collections  of  verse.)     Notice  these  two  lines: 

How  did  they  all  come  to  be  just  you? 
God  thought  about  me,  and  so  I  grew. 

Isn't  that  true  about  all  people,  even  those  that  first 
lived  on  the  earth?  In  the  story  of  creation  as  told  in 
the  first  chapter  of  Genesis,  a  verse  says,  "And  God 
created  man  in  his  own  image,  in  the  image  of  God 
created  he  him;  male  and  female  created  he  them."  Shall 
we  remember,  as  we  read  those  words,  that  the  thought 
of  God  created  mankind  to  be  like  himself,  and  that 
through  long  ages  people  grew  better  in  all  ways  because 
God  still  thought  about  them  and  led  them  on? 


MAN   COMES   UPON  THE  EARTH 

So  to  the  world  that  had  grown  beautiful  and 
useful  under  God's  love  and  thought,  human  beings 
came.  ' 

Just  how  they  came  or  just  when,  no  one  knows; 
but  that  they  were  living  here  when  the  thick  ice 
sheet  was  melting  away,  we  are  quite  sure.  For, 
buried  in  the  masses  of  sand  and  gravel  that  the 
rushing  waters  spread  around,  have  been  found  some 
of  the  stone  weapons  that  those  early  men  had  used. 

The  animals  have  left  shells  and  footprints,  and 
many  of  their  forms  preserved  in  nature's  book;  the 
plants  have  also  left  their  forms  and  shapes;  but  men 
have  left  the  things  that  they  have  made  and  the 
record  of  what  they  have  done.  Tools,  weapons, 
pottery  and  sculpture,  buildings,  drawings  and  writ- 
ings, these  are  the  things  that  tell  us  about  mankind, 
where  men  have  lived,  how  they  have  lived,  and  often, 
too,  what  kind  of  people  they  were. 

The  very  first  men  did  not  know  how  to  make  any 
of  these  things.  They  came  upon  the  world  like  the 
animals,  and  for  a  while  they  must  have  lived  some- 
what as  the  animals  did.  But  it  was  not  for  that  sort 
of  a  life  that  God  had  sent  them  upon  the  world.  He 
had  given  mankind  gifts  that  the  animals  have  never 
possessed:  an  upright  figure  with  swinging  arms; 
hands  with  five,  flexible  fingers;  a  thinking,  reason- 

251 


252  THE  COMING   OF  MAN 

ing  brain  and  a  throat  and  tongue  which  can  be 
trained  to  communicate  the  thought  of  the  mind. 
But  even  more  than  all  these,  God  has  given  to  man- 
kind a  loving  spirit  which  is  a  part  of  Himself.  Be- 
cause of  this  precious  gift  men  became  the  children 
of  God. 

How  do  you  suppose  they  began  to  use  those  gifts 
that  made  them  so  different  from  the  animals? 
What  impulse  first  made  them  stoop  to  pick  up  a 
stone  and  then  throw  it  in  self-defense  at  some 
animal  prowling  near  by?  What  made  them  notice 
that  a  sharp  stone  would  defend  them  better  than  a 
round  one?  And  what  was  it  that  prompted  them  to 
chip  one  stone  to  a  point  with  another? 

Monkeys  and  apes  will  throw  stones  to  defend 
themselves,  but  they  have  never  been  known  to 
sharpen  them  to  a  point.  They  have  not  the  seeing 
eye  and  the  thinking  brain  that  men  have.  The  eyes 
of  men  see  not  only  the  objects  about  them,  but  they 
see  what  can  be  done  with  the  objects. 

Did  you  ever  watch  a  baby  trying  to  put  one  block 
upon  another,  and  hear  its  happy  laughter  when  it 
succeeded?  Probably  those  early  men  laughed  with 
surprised  delight  when  they  found  that  they  could  do 
new  things,  for  they  were  but  babies,  after  all,  in  this 
great,  new  world. 

There  is  something  within  us  all  that  urges  us  on  to 
try  always  to  do  things  in  a  better  way.  That  is  our 
spirit,  the  supreme  gift  of  God.  And  even  in  those 
early  days,  the  spirit  which  was  a  part  of  each  man 
and  woman  urged  them  on  to  better  ways  of  life. 

They  first  lived  in  caves.     They  ate  roots  and 


MAN   COMES   UPON   THE   EARTH         253 

bark,  nuts  and  berries,  while  they  defended  them- 
selves from  the  dangerous  animals  with  stones. 
Soon  they  learned  to  eat  the  flesh  and  wear  the  fur 
of  those  they  killed  in  self-defense,  and  then,  after 
they  had  succeeded  in  making  weapons  for  them- 
selves, they  went  upon  the  chase  to  find  those  animals, 
the  meat  and  skin  of  which  they  liked  the  best. 
With  the  chipped  and  sharpened  rock  fastened  to  a 
stick  of  wood  as  an  arrow  or  a  spear  or  a  hatchet, 
they  could  be  quite  brave,  hunting  down  the  wild 
creatures  they  wanted;  not  just  huddling  together 
and  protecting  themselves. 

So  they  learned  to  make  many  implements.  Some 
were  of  chipped  stone,  with  bone  or  wooden  handles, 
some  of  sharpened  bone  and  some  of  sharpened  wood. 
They  learned  also,  that  if  they  were  brave  and  watch- 
ful they  could  overcome  even  the  most  dreaded  of  the 
animals.  It  would  not  take  them  very  long  to  see 
that  the  animals  always  went  about  their  hunting  in 
the  same  way,  each  according  to  his  kind,  and  never 
changing  it,  while  they  could  always  do  things  in  a 
different  way.  They  saw,  also,  that  the  braver  and 
more  courageous  among  them  were  the  more  sure  of 
outwitting  the  dull  beasts. 

In  some  way  they  learned  the  use  of  fire.  How 
surprised  they  must  have  been  when  they  found  what 
a  useful  friend  it  could  be  to  them!  It  would  cook 
their  food;  it  would  keep  them  warm;  and,  best  of 
all,  it  would  \eep  away  the  prowling  animals. 

At  first  these  cave  men  must  have  saved  the  fire, 
probably  from  the  embers  of  a  forest  fire;  for  nature's 
book  tells  us  that  there  were  some  forest  fires  long 


254  THE  COMING   OF   MAN 

before  careless  men  set  them.  These  embers  that  the 
cave  men  saved  they  tended  carefully  with  dried 
leaves  and  twigs.  Very,  very  careful  they  had  to  be 
of  those  fires,  for  if  they  let  them  go  out  where  could 
they  get  another?  But  after  a  time  they  learned  to 
start  their  fire.  Perhaps  it  might  have  happened  this 
way. 

Suppose  that  two  of  those  men  were  busy  in  their 
cave  long,  long  ago,  boring  a  hole  in  a  piece  of  wood 
with  a  sharpened  stick.  That  was  the  way  they  made 
the  handles  for  their  stone  implements.  Now  it 
might  have  happened  that  the  wood  they  were  using 
was  much  harder  and  drier  than  usual,  and  the  man 
who  twirled  the  pointed  stick  was  very  strong.  He 
twirled  so  fast  that  the  wood  became  quite  hot,  and 
smoked  a  little.  But  neither  of  the  men  knew  what 
that  meant,  and  so  they  kept  on  with  their  work. 
Then,  suddenly,  a  flame  leaped  from  the  hole  they 
were  making  and  burnt  them  and  their  sticks  of 
wood,  and  even  the  dry  straw  spread  over  the  floor 
of  the  cave  for  a  bed. 

Now  it  may  be  that  the  first  man  was  angry,  seeing 
that  all  their  work  was  ruined  and  their  beds  gone. 
But  the  second  man,  the  one  who  twirled  the  stick, 
waved  his  arms  and  shouted  for  joy,  because  he  saw 
how  men  could  make  that  mysterious  and  useful  fire 
when  they  wanted  it. 

So  the  stick-twirler  ran  for  more  wood,  and,  squat- 
ting down  at  the  entrance  of  the  cave  before  all  the 
other  inhabitants,  showed  them  how  to  get  a  spark 
that  they  could  coax  into  a  fire.  That  was  a  joyful 
discovery,  for  it  meant  that  they  would  not  have  to 


MAN   COMES   UPON   THE   EARTH         255 

stay  always  where  the  fire  was,  but  that  they  could 
move  about  and  make  a  fire  wherever  they  happened 
to  be. 

Later  these  cave  men  learned  to  make  fire  in 
another  way,  by  striking  very  hard  pieces  of  stone 
together  and  getting  a  spark.  Even  so  recently  as 
our  great  grandfathers'  time  a  piece  of  flint  and  a 
rod  of  steel  had  to  be  used  to  start  a  fire,  when  the 
old  one  went  out. 

These  ancient  men  looked  upon  fire  as  a  friend,  a 
mysterious  friend,  that  they  could  not  understand. 
The  animals  were  all  afraid  of  it  and  so  it  kept  them 
away.  Then,  too,  it  kept  the  people  warm  through 
those  long,  cold  nights.  The  climate  was  still  much 
colder  over  all  of  Europe  and  North  America  than  it 
is  now,  for  the  great  ice  sheet  had  not  entirely  melted 
away.  And  these  men,  even  after  they  had  learned 
to  chip  stone  weapons  and  make  a  fire,  yet  did  not 
know  how  to  clothe  themselves  comfortably. 

Finally,  those  early  cave  men  learned  to  use  the 
fire  to  cook  the  meat  and  nuts  that  they  had  been 
eating  raw.  Then  they  soon  learned  to  grind  the 
seeds  of  the  tall  grass  which  they  had  gathered,  and 
cook  the  meal  with  water.  When  they  learned  to 
cook  their  food,  mankind  commenced  to  be  civilized. 

Seeing  what  a  benefit  fire  was  to  them,  they  came 
gradually  to  believe  that  fire  was  the  source  of  all 
their  blessings.  The  very  mystery  of  it  was  fascinat- 
ing to  them.  It  came  from  the  sky ;  they  knew  that, 
for  was  it  not  the  sun,  that  golden,  fiery  ball,  that 
kept  them  warm  during  the  daytime?  And  was  it 
not  the  lightning  that  brought  fire  to  earth?    But 


256  THE  COMING   OF  MAN 

where  it  had  been  hiding  before  it  showed  itself  in  the 
spark  that  flew  from  the  pounded  flints  or  in  the  Uttle 
traiUng  flame  that  came  at  the  end  of  the  twirUng 
stick,  they  could  not  guess. 

As  they  wondered  more  and  more  about  the 
mystery  of  the  fire,  they  began  to  worship  it,  for  the 
Spirit  of  God  which  is  in  all  human  beings  longed  to 
reach  above  itself  and  its  surroundings  toward  some 
greater  power.  Fire  was  the  greatest  friend  the  earth 
could  give  them,  because  without  it  they  could  not 
have  become  civilized.  But  they  had  an  unseen 
Friend,  closer  even  than  the  fire,  and  a  giver  of 
greater  gifts,  for  it  was  He  who  had  given  the  fire, 
and  He  had  given  also  the  power  to  learn  how  to  use 
it  and  how  to  make  it. 

For  thousands  of  years  men  worshiped  the  fire, 
and  the  sun  and  the  lightning  which  seemed  to  them 
to  be  the  sources  of  the  fire.  But  God  knew  that  they 
were  trying  to  reach  Him,  and  He  loved  them  and 
helped  them,  for  were  they  not  His  creatures?  He 
knew  that  they  were  feeUng  for  Him  in  obedience  to 
the  impulse  of  His  spirit  within  them. 

They  were  like  children,  those  early  people,  and 
had  to  learn  so  slowly  for  themselves  those  things 
that  we  are  taught  by  our  parents  and  our  teachers. 
But  because  they  did  learn  how  to  live  in  this  won- 
derful world,  how  to  use  its  wealth,  how  to  obey  its 
laws,  and,  finally,  how  to  worship  God  aright,  we  are 
able  to  live  now,  the  people  that  we  are,  with  all  the 
blessings  that  we  enjoy. 


LESSON  31 

MAN'S  PROGRESS:  THE  WORKING  HANDS 
AND   THE  THINKING  MIND 


MEMORY  VERSE 

Whatsoever  thy  hand  findeth  to  do,  do  it  with  thy  might. 

Ecclesiastes  9:10 

The  Purpose 

The  fact  that  skill  of  hand  helped  to  develop  the  mind 
of  man  is  brought  out  in  this  lesson.  For  the  child,  as 
for  primitive  man,  hand  work  well  done  stimulates  the 
mind. 

Mere  increase  in  physical  comfort  does  not  mean  a  real 
advance  for  any  individual  or  any  nation,  unless  there 
goes  with  it  a  corresponding  progress  in  mental  and 
spiritual  life. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

The  teacher  should  impress  upon  the  class  that  as 
soon  as  the  savage  men  commenced  to  use  their  hands  to 
make  the  articles  they  needed,  they  became  less  and  less 
like  savages  and  more  and  more  civilized,  their  civiliza- 
tion increasing  with  their  skill.  As  an  application  of  the 
lesson  the  children  should  be  urged  to  pay  attention  to 
their  own  hand  work,  that  the  increase  in  the  skill  of 
their  hands  may  produce  a  corresponding  keenness  of 
their  minds. 

Interest  should  be  aroused  in  the  children  over  the 
257 


258  THE   COMING   OF  MAN 

probable  fact  that  the  animals  and  insects  taught  our 
earliest  ancestors  many  of  their  first  lessons. 

Hand  Work 

The  leaflet  offers  opportunity  for  original  expression, 
and  variety  according  to  the  abilities  of  the  pupils  should 
be  encouraged. 

OPENING   TALK 

Let  me  see  the  lists  you  have  made  of  the  ways  in 
which  people  are  superior  to  animals.  You  have  thought 
of  a  good  many.  Now  let  us  think  of  one  of  the  ways  in 
which  the  mind  came  to  be  so  well  developed  that  peo- 
ple came  to  be  civilized  beings  instead  of  savages. 


WORKING   HANDS   AND    THINKING    MIND 

Do  you  suppose  that  it  took  those  early  men  very 
long  to  notice  that  their  hands  were  quite  unlike 
the  fore  paws  of  the  animals  among  which  they 
lived?  A  bear  can  walk  on  his  hind  legs  and  put 
things  into  his  mouth  with  his  paws,  but  he  cannot 
move  the  different  joints  of  his  paws.  The  monkeys' 
fore  paws,  which  look  so  much  like  the  hands  of  the 
cave  men,  cannot  be  used  as  the  cave  men  learned 
to  use  their  hands. 

Those  cave  men,  like  ourselves,  had  fingers  which 
could  be  moved  as  they  wished.  They  were  able, 
as  we  are,  to  touch  the  thumb  with  the  tip  of  each 
finger,  and  that  no  animal  can  do.  The  more  those 
early  men  tried  to  do,  the  more  easily  their  hands 
and  fingers  obeyed  their  wish.  The  training  which 
they  gave  their  fingers  by  using  them  helped  to  de- 
velop their  minds.  So  the  more  skillful  their  hands 
became  the  quicker  and  brighter  their  minds  were. 

Did  they  learn  to  weave  by  watching  the  spiders 
spin  their  thread  and  weave  their  webs  overhead  in 
the  roofs  of  the  caves?  Many  times  they  must  have 
lain  on  beds  of  leaves,  looking  up  into  the  smoke- 
begrimed  roofs  where  the  little  spiders  were  busy 
making  festoons  and  spreading  out  their  carpets. 
Spiders  had  been  making  webs  for  millions  of  years; 
it  would  not  be  strange  if  they  should  have  taught 

259 


260  THE  COMING   OF  MAN 

mankind.  Perhaps,  too,  from  watching  the  birds 
weave  straw  and  grass  into  their  nests,  those  early 
men  tried  themselves  to  plait  grass  into  small 
mats,  just  as  you  learned  first,  in  kindergarten,  to 
plait  the  colored  strips  of  paper  into  a  little  square 
mat. 

In  some  way  those  early  men  and  women  did 
learn  to  plait  grass  and  then  weave  it.  Later  they 
learned  to  use  the  fibers  of  the  flax  in  making  cloth. 
That  was  a  most  useful  discovery.  They  have 
handed  it  down  from  generation  to  generation  even 
to  our  own  time,  and  we  still  make  from  the  flax 
fiber  our  much-prized  linen  cloth. 

Now  when  these  cave  people  found  what  they 
could  do  with  their  hands,  and  in  how  many  ways 
they  could  use  the  things  that  were  growing  about 
them,  they  were  not  content  to  live  in  caves  as 
their  ancestors  had  done.  They  wanted  to  make 
homes  that  would  be  lighter  and  drier  and  more 
comfortable.  Where  did  they  get  the  idea?  We 
do  not  know.  Perhaps  it  was  from  seeing  the  birds 
build  their  nests,  or  from  using  some  shelter  made 
by  trees  that  had  fallen  against  each  other.  Be 
that  as  it  may,  the  cave  men  learned  to  make  huts 
for  their  homes,  placing  poles  in  a  circle,  one  end  of 
each  upon  the  ground  while  the  upper  ends  met  in 
a  point  above,  much  like  an  Indian's  tepee. 

When  they  learned  to  do  this  they  were  no  longer 
like  wild  men,  because  they  could  live  in  separate 
families  then,  not  all  crowding  together  in  a  cave, 
as  many  as  it  would  hold.  They  scattered  around 
in  tribes,  no  longer  dependent  upon  the  place  where 


MAN'S  PROGRESS  261 

the  cave  happened  to  be,  for  they  could  choose  any 
place  that  seemed  best  fitted  for  their  homes.  By 
this  time  they  had  learned  to  plant  the  seeds  of  the 
grasses  that  gave  them  grain  and  flax,  and  some 
fruits.  Then  it  became  necessary  that  they  should 
live  in  communities  near  the  cultivated  ground. 

Some  of  the  peoples  made  their  houses  on  piles 
that  they  had  driven  into  the  bottom  of  the  lake. 
May  we  not  beUeve  that  they  had  seen  their  little 
brother,  the  beaver,  at  work  upon  his  house  in  the 
pond?  How  could  they  help  wishing  to  be  as  safe 
as  he?  Don't  you  suppose  it  was  from  the  beaver 
and  from  the  birds  that  those  early  men  learned  to 
plaster  their  houses  with  clay? 

Then,  later,  when  they  found  how  hard  the  clay 
would  become  when  dried  in  the  sun  or  baked  in  a 
fire,  they  learned  to  make  dishes  of  it.  Indeed,  our 
own  dishes  that  we  call  chma,  and  prize  so  highly, 
are  all  made  of  clay.  So  from  these  early  people 
has  come  down  to  us  the  knowledge  of  making  dishes 
of  clay,  as  well  as  of  making  houses,  and  of  spinning 
and  weaving  the  fiber  of  flax  into  cloth. 

They  watched  the  beaver  fell  the  trees  and  roll 
them  down  to  the  water,  float  them  over  to  the  dam 
or  to  their  house,  and  anchor  them  securely  in  the 
mud.  Their  own  way  of  felling  trees  was  almost  as 
toilsome  as  that  of  the  beaver,  for  all  they  had  to 
use  were  hatchets  made  of  stone.  Much  patience  it 
must  have  required  to  chop  down  the  trees  with  those 
rough  tools.  But  those  men  knew  nothing  of  metal 
and  its  uses,  and  all  their  implements  were  made  of 
stone  or  carved  out  of  the  bones  and  horns  of  animals. 


262  THE  COMING   OF   MAN 

It  is  remarkable  how  many  useful  tools  they 
made  for  themselves  from  these  simple  materials. 
They  used  the  antlers  of  the  stag  for  rakes,  or  as 
picks,  and  parts  of  them  for  fish  hooks  and  spears. 
From  their  weapons  it  looks  as  if  the  lake-dwellers 
speared  the  larger  fish  in  much  the  same  way  that  the 
North  American  Indians  did.  They  carved  the  horn 
into  drinking-cups,  into  awls,  and  even  into  such 
civilized  articles  as  pins  and  needles,  combs,  buttons, 
beads  and  earrings. 

Now  you  are  going  to  ask  how  we  know  about 
these  things  that  were  made  so  many  thousands  of 
years  ago.     Have  you  forgotten  natm-e's  book? 

Just  as  the  water  at  the  sea  beach  buried  and 
preserved  the  shells  and  the  footprints  of  animals, 
so  the  water  of  those  lakes  where  the  lake-dwellers 
lived  has  preserved  for  us  the  hunting  and  farming 
implements,  the  household  utensils  and  bits  of  food 
and  clothing  that  fell  into  the  lake  and  were  buried 
in  the  mud.  Such  multitudes  of  articles  as  those 
ancient  men  had  learned  to  make,  and  so  skillful 
had  they  become  with  their  stone  tools!  Think  of 
it,  a  comb  made  of  boxwood!  Pins  and  needles 
made  of  bone! 

If,  when  you  were  working  in  your  garden,  you 
should  dig  up  an  old  coin  or  an  Indian  arrow-head, 
would  you  not  look  at  it  with  a  strange  feeling  of 
wonder,  knowing  that  some  human  being  of  long 
ago  had  lived  upon  that  very  spot?  So  when  we 
open  natiu-e's  book  and  see  in  its  pages  the  combs 
and  the  buttons,  the  needles  and  pins  that  some  long 
forgotten  people  used  at  their  toilet;  when  we  see 


MAN'S   PROGRESS  263 

the  pitchforks,  rakes  and  hoes  that  they  used  on 
their  farms,  the  fruits  and  grains  they  raised,  the 
hnen  cloth  they  made,  the  piles  upon  which  they 
built  their  houses  and  the  ladders  and  boats  by 
which  they  reached  them,  and  even  the  Uttle  toy 
boats  of  the  children,  we  know  a  great  deal  about 
these  people  who  lived  so  long  ago. 

It  seems  as  if  those  ancient  people  needed  only  the 
knowledge  how  to  use  the  bright  metals  that  were 
in  the  rocks  about  them,  to  become  really  civilized. 
In  some  way  they  got  even  this  knowledge.  They 
must  have  learned  that  secret  by  themselves,  for  the 
animals  could  not  teach  them  that. 

Perhaps  the  fire  did.  Perhaps  some  of  the  rocks 
they  heated  for  cooking  their  food  had  copper  or 
tin  in  them.  Perhaps  the  metal  softened  and 
changed  its  shape  under  the  heat  of  the  fire.  Then 
some  one  whose  eyes  were  quick  and  whose  brain 
was  quick,  too,  would  see  that  the  bright  shining 
substance  was  softer  than  the  rocks  and  could  be 
shaped  and  so  used  for  new  and  useful  objects. 

The  use  of  bronze  (which  is  a  mixture  of  copper 
and  tin)  for  weapons  and  implements  of  all  kinds 
began  a  new  era  in  the  civilization  of  mankind. 
Then  came  the  use  of  gold  and  silver,  and  later  of 
iron.  We  owe  our  present  high  civiUzation  largely 
to  the  use  of  iron  and  the  steel  that  is  made  from 
it,  —  that  iron  which  the  rain  water  collected  from 
the  rocks,  and  deposited  in  a  form  that  we  could  get; 
to  the  coal  that  was  made  from  the  great  forests  of 
ages  ago;  and  to  the  knowledge  that  has  come  to 
us  from  countless  generations  of  people  all  trying 


264  THE  COMING   OF   MAN 

to  improve  on  what  they  had  abeady  done,  and  to 
learn  new  things. 

What  but  the  Spirit  of  God  implanted  in  those 
men,  and  the  loving  care  of  God  in  helping  them  to 
follow  that  Spirit,  could  have  led  them  so  far  along 
from  the  state  of  the  early,  savage  man?  With 
those  simple  tools,  the  chipped  and  sharpened 
stones,  and  the  fire  that  they  had  learned  to  make, 
these  lake-dwellers  had  done  all  this! 

It  was  from  beginnings  like  these  of  the  early  men 
that  we  have  come  to  be  what  we  are.  And  as  we 
ourselves  train  our  hands  and  our  minds  to  make  the 
best  use  of  the  materials  and  forces  that  are  all 
about  us,  we  shall  always  be  finding  new  ways  and 
new  materials,  so  that  we,  too,  shall  bless  all  those 
who  come  after  us  to  this  wonderful  world  that  God 
has  made. 


LESSON  32 

MAN»S  PROGRESS:   GROWTH  IN 
RELIGION 


MEMORY   VERSE 

And  ye  shall  seek  me,  and  find  me,  when  ye  shall  search  for  me 
with  all  your  heart. 

Jer.  29:13 

The  Purpose 

To  impress  upon  the  mind  of  the  growing  child  the  fact 
that  we  grow  to  be  like  whatever  we  look  up  to  or  worship, 
is  the  main  purpose  of  this  lesson,  although  the  quicker 
growth  in  civilization  because  of  the  social  mingling  of  the 
different  peoples  is  the  subject  of  the  story. 

There  are  two  other  truths  contained  in  this  lesson: 
the  mutual  help  which  men  and  nations  should  be  to 
each  other;  and  the  danger  which  comfort  in  material 
conditions  brings,  in  shutting  away  from  our  lives  the 
desire  to  reach  up  to  the  true  spiritual  Life  that  em- 
braces all. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher  \ 

A  map  of  Europe  should  be  used  in  the  class  in  order 
that  the  voyages  of  the  adventurous  sailors  may  be 
traced  from  their  home  city  of  Tyre  to  England  and  on 
to  the  Baltic  Sea.  The  countries  of  Egypt,  Greece, 
Italy  and  Palestine  or  Canaan  should  also  be  pointed 
out. 

The  teacher  should  make  much  of  the  daring,  ad- 
265 


266  THE  COMING   OF   MAN 

venturous  spirit  of  the  Phoenician  merchants,  for  by  so 
doing  she  will  arouse  the  interest  of  the  children  in  them, 
and  so  be  able,  quite  naturally  and  easily,  to  lead  to  the 
thought  that  moral  life  and  noble  ideals  must  accom- 
pany advance  in  thought  and  skill.  This  shows  man's 
progress  in  religious  thought  in  that  most  advanced  re- 
ligious nation,  the  Hebrew  people. 

Hand  Work 

The  work  on  the  leaflet  may  easily  be  done  in  class. 
Notice  the  assignment  of  home  work,  and  bring  maps 
next  Sunday  to  test  its  accomplishment. 


OPENING    TALK 

If  you  were  to  go  from  A  (your  own  town)  to  B  (a 
neighboring  city),  what  ways  might  you  travel?  (Train, 
trolley,  automobile,  carriage  will  probably  be  men- 
tioned.) How  long  would  it  take  to  walk  there?  If  you 
want  to  make  rapid  progress,  you  will  take  the  quickest 
way.  But  the  walking  trip  might  make  you  stronger, 
might  give  you  many  chances  to  do  a  kindness. to  some 
one  on  the  way.  You  might  learn  many  things  in  the 
slower  journey  about  the  country  and  the  crops  and  the 
people. 

Our  story  to-day  will  tell  us  how  people  learned  more 
rapid  ways  of  traveling,  and  so  made  progress  through 
their  commerce  and  by  learning  from  one  another.  But 
to  know  if  they  had  truly  advanced  we  must  ask  not  only, 
How  fast  could  they  go  from  place  to  place?  but.  What 
kind  of  people  were  they  when  they  got  there?  That 
shows  why  growth  in  religion  —  that  is,  in  man's  thought 
and  goodness  —  is  a  measure  of  his  true  progress. 


MAN'S  PROGRESS:   GROWTH  IN  RELIGION 

After  men  had  learned  the  use  of  metals  they 
progressed  much  more  rapidly,  not  only  in  the  arts  of 
building  and  in  making  articles  for  household  com- 
fort, but  in  knowledge  of  the  world  and  the  treasures 
for  their  use  that  it  contained.  Once  having  learned 
how  to  use  the  metals,  they  could  not  do  without 
them.  When  their  supply  was  used  up  they  were 
obliged  to  search  for  more. 

That  meant  that  they  must  go  about,  travel  to 
other  places,  visiting  other  tribes  and  exchanging 
goods  with  other  people.  This  was  commerce,  and 
commerce,  even  on  so  small  a  scale  as  that,  is  a  great 
civilizer.  The  very  need  of  going  about  makes  it 
necessary  for  new  methods  of  travel  to  be  invented. 
Besides,  people  who  trade  with  one  another  learn 
from  each  other  better  ways  of  living  and  working. 
So  the  discovery  of  metal  helped  them  in  these  two 
ways,  by  the  better  implements  that  they  were  able 
to  make  with  it,  and  by  the  need  to  go  about  to  get 
new  supplies. 

At  first,  of  course,  men  traveled  only  on  their  own 
feet.  They  did  not  need  any  help,  for  they  were 
strong  and  fleet  of  foot,  and  they  did  not  go  long  dis- 
tances from  their  caves  or  their  fires.  When  need 
arose,  they  would  carry  their  burdens  on  their  backs, 
or  upon  their  heads,  or  in  their  arms.    But  when  the 

267 


268  THE   COMING   OF   MAN 

first  simple  commerce  started,  there  was  need  of  going 
farther  and  of  carrying  burdens  that  were  too  heavy 
even  for  those  strong  men. 

What  made  them  think  of  taming  animals  and 
training  them  to  carry  their  burdens  for  them?  How 
did  those  ancient  men  learn  that  they  could  catch 
and  tame  and  harness  the  swift-footed,  wild  horses, 
or  the  fierce  and  enormous  wild  elephants,  or  the 
camels  or  the  reindeer?  We  do  not  know.  Yet  in  all 
the  different  countries  men  have  trained  the  native 
animals  to  be  their  burden  bearers.  In  many  of  the 
countries  the  burdens  are  still  placed  upon  the  ani- 
mals' backs,  but  in  the  more  civilized  countries  the 
animals  draw  the  burdens  behind  them.  That  means 
that  the  people  have  devised  some  sort  of  sledge  or 
wagon,  and  it  means,  besides,  a  cleared  road  for  the 
wagon  to  go  over. 

What  do  you  suppose  ever  made  men  think  of 
making  wheels  and  fastening  them  to  an  axle  so  they 
would  turn  around  when  pulled,  and  so  carry  the 
burden  along  more  easily?  Yet  somewhere  the  first 
wheeled  wagons  began  to  be  used,  and  somewhere 
the  first  roads  began  to  stretch  out  over  the  country. 

Then  some  enterprising  men,  not  content  to  have 
only  their  goods  carried,  wished  to  be  carried  them- 
selves. So  chariots  came  into  use.  The  first  two- 
wheeled  chariots,  set  upon  an  axle  without  springs, 
were  not  comfortable,  but  they  were  often  gorgeous 
enough  to  make  up  for  that  lack.  It  has  not  been 
very  long  that  people  have  ridden  in  four-wheeled 
carriages,  furnished  with  comfortable  springs;  and 
only  quite  recently  that  rubber  tires  upon  the  wheels 


GROWTH   IN   RELIGION  269 

of  carriages  and  automobiles  have  made  riding  so 
easy  and  agreeable. 

Now  with  tame  animals  to  carry  the  goods,  roads 
to  travel  upon,  and  a  desire  for  the  articles  made  by 
neighboring  peoples,  commerce  was  assured.  After 
this,  civilization  progressed  more  rapidly,  because 
men  began  to  learn  from  each  other  and  were  not 
obhged  to  find  out  everything  for  themselves.  And 
the  different  tribes  or  nations  —  for  people  had 
banded  themselves  into  nations  by  this  time  —  set 
to  work  earnestly  to  make  as  well  as  possible  those 
articles  they  used  in  trade.  For  there  was  something 
that  the  people  of  each  nation  had  learned  to  make 
better  than  the  peoples  of  other  nations  did. 

Some  had  learned  to  make  their  clay  dishes  and 
utensils  much  better  than  their  neighbors.  They 
learned  to  decorate  them  with  painted  and  with 
raised  figures.  Other  peoples  found  how  to  use  the 
flecks  of  gold  they  had  noticed  in  the  sands  of  the 
river  beds,  and  they  learned  to  make  such  beautiful 
ornaments  that  they  carried  on  a  regular  trade  in 
them.  Still  others  had  learned  how  to  use  the  wool 
of  the  sheep  and  goats  that  they  had  domesticated; 
how  to  spin  it  into  yarn  and  how  to  weave  it  into 
firm,  warm  cloth. 

As  commerce  increased  it  came  to  be  carried  on 
largely  by  water.  As  a  result,  those  peoples  who  lived 
along  the  margin  of  a  sea  like  the  Mediterranean 
advanced  more  rapidly  than  those  who  could  only 
trade  across  the  land.  Dangerous  as  it  was  to  trust 
to  a  water  journey  in  those  small  rude  boats  of  theirs, 
it  still  was  not  so  hard  as  a  journey  by  land. 


270  THE  COMING   OF  MAN 

The  Phoenicians,  who  hved  just  north  of  the  place 
Abraham  chose  to  be  the  home  of  his  people,  early 
learned  to  trust  themselves  to  the  sea,  or,  as  it  says  in 
the  Bible,  'Hhey  went  down  to  the  sea  in  ships." 
At  the  time  when  remembered  history  begins,  and 
we  do  not  have  to  depend  on  nature's  book  alone  for 
all  we  know  about  those  who  went  before  us,  we  find 
the  Phoenicians  the  greatest  traders.  Other  people, 
like  the  Egyptians  and  the  Assyrians,  traded  between 
themselves  across  the  desert  by  means  of  camels;  and 
in  central  Europe  where  our  lake-dweller  had  lived, 
they  probably  traded  with  laden  horses.  But  the 
Phoenicians  put  out  to  sea  in  ships  and  went  to  all 
the  countries  that  bordered  the  Mediterranean, 
carrying  back  and  forth,  from  one  people  to  another, 
the  articles  each  desired. 

As  far  as  England  those  small  and  unseaworthy 
ships  went  in  their  search  for  tin.  This  is  a  rare 
metal,  and  most  useful  in  giving  the  desired  hardness 
to  copper.  They  even  went  to  the  Baltic  Sea  for 
amber.  That  was  a  venturesome  voyage  for  those 
days.  Those  were  brave  men  and  ready  for  adven- 
ture, or  they  never  would  have  trusted  their  lives  so 
far  from  their  home  on  the  frail  boats  which  they 
called  ships.  Out  of  the  Straits  of  Gibraltar  they 
sailed,  over  a  rough  ocean  to  a  land  of  savages,  to  get 
the  much  treasured  tin,  and  far,  far  beyond  to  get 
other  things  they  wanted. 

For  years  and  years  theirs  were  the  ships  that 
sailed  back  and  forth  in  the  Mediterranean  and  in  the 
Atlantic  Ocean,  carrying  about  to  the  different 
peoples  many  a  new  idea  as  well  as  the  articles  of 


GROWTH   IN   RELIGION  271 

trade.  It  was  they,  as  we  shall  see  in  the  next 
chapter,  who  carried  from  Egypt  to  Greece  many  of 
the  things  which  the  Egyptians  had  discovered  and 
used,  but  which  the  Greeks  made  more  useful  and 
more  beautiful. 

The  Egyptians  were  the  most  civilized  nation  at 
that  time,  but  the  Greeks  possessed  the  greater  souls 
and  the  keener  minds.  Because  of  their  love  of 
beauty  and  their  desire  to  do  and  to  make  every- 
thing in  the  best  way,  the  Greeks  became  the  teach- 
ers of  the  other  nations  in  Europe.  To  them  we 
ourselves  owe  much  of  our  architecture,  our  art  and 
our  literature.  But  it  was  the  Phoenician  traders 
who  first  taught  the  Greeks  some  of  the  very  things 
that  the  Greeks  themselves  improved  upon  and  after- 
ward taught  the  world. 

Now  these  Phoenicians,  although  they  were  so- 
brave  and  courageous  in  spirit,  and  so  useful  in  start- 
ing Europe  toward  a  higher  civilization  than  any 
other  countries  of  the  Old  World  have  attained,  were 
not  themselves  truly  civilized.  They  did  not  grow 
as  God  meant  that  mankind  should  grow,  and  this 
was  largely  because  they  had  the  wrong  thought  of 
God.  They  believed  that  He  desired  human  sacri- 
fices. In  their  mistaken  worship  they  did  such  cruel 
and  wicked  things  that  they  became  cruel  and 
wicked  in  their  own  Uves.  All  the  other  nations 
came  to  hate  them  for  these  traits,  and  finally  they 
were  conquered,  their  rich  and  powerful  city  was 
destroyed  and  they  were  a  nation  of  traders  no 
longer. 

One  nation  there  was  at  that  time  whose  people 


272  THE  COMING   OF  MAN 

worshiped  God  in  ways  and  with  thoughts  that 
made  them  truly  great,  because  it  made  their  lives 
truly  moral.  These  were  the  Hebrews,  the  descend- 
ants of  Abraham,  whose  history  is  written  in  the 
Bible. 

You  have  heard  the  story  of  Abraham,  how  he 
started  out  from  the  land  of  his  fathers  to  worship, 
in  a  new  place,  the  unseen  Spirit  whom  he  had  come 
to  know  as  the  true  God.  His  people  were  the 
Chaldeans,  who  had  always  worshiped  the  sun  and 
fire.  They  used  no  image;  no  temple  roof  had  shut 
away  their  rising  thoughts  from  the  vast  firmament 
that  is  full  of  the  evidences  of  God's  work  and  of  His 
love.  Nightly  they  studied  the  stars  and  learned  by 
their  devout  study  many  of  the  laws  that  govern  the 
heavens. 

It  is  not  to  be  wondered  at,  then,  that  a  child  of 
such  a  reverent  people  should  have  felt  his  way  to  a 
truer  thought  of  God,  that  God  of  whose  Spirit  we  all 
partake  and  in  whose  loving  protection  we  all  share. 
Nor  does  it  seem  strange  that  the  people  who  began 
so  long  ago  to  feel  that  God  is  Spirit  and  that  He 
demands  that  His  children  shall  offer  to  Him  lives  that 
are  pure  and  good,  should  be  the  people  who  have 
given  to  the  world  its  highest  religion  as  well  as  its 
holiest  leader. 

So  mankind  has  grown,  reaching  onward  and  up- 
ward to  a  better  and  a  higher  life. 


LESSON   33 
MAN'S  PROGRESS:  THE  WRITTEN  WORD 

MEMORY  VERSE 

Let  not  kindness  and  truth  forsake  thee: 

Bind  them  about  thy  neck; 

Write  them  upon  the  tablet  of  thy  heart: 

So  shalt  thou  find  favor  and  good  understanding 

In  the  sight  of  God  and  man. 

Prov.  3:  3,  4 

The  Purpose 

This  lesson  which  tells  the  story  of  the  invention  and 
adoption  of  the  alphabet,  and  its  subsequent  benefit  to 
the  future  ages  of  men,  has  the  purpose  of  impressing 
upon  the  children  the  importance  of  thought  and  of  being 
able  to  communicate  thought;  also,  that  the  written 
thought,  if  it  be  worthy  and  true,  lives  on  to  help 
mankind. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

The  story  of  the  invention  of  the  alphabet  can  be  made 
as  fascinating  as  a  fairy  tale,  if  read  with  the  right  spirit 
and  emphasis;  and  it  ought  to  interest  the  children  in 
those  words  which  often,  in  their  daily  lessons,  have 
seemed  tedious  and  uninteresting  to  them. 

Let  it  be  impressed  upon  them  that  even  children  be- 
come more  or  less  like  thpse  companions  that  they  admire; 
and  that  the  best  companions,  the  best  books  and  the 
best  thoughts  will  lead  them  to  become  better  and  more 
useful  men  and  women. 

273 


274  THE   COMING   OF  MAN 

Hand  Work 

The  pupils  should  be  encouraged  to  attempt  the  vari- 
ous ways  of  expressing  thought  without  the  use  of  spoken 
or  written  words.  The  leaflet  gives  opportunity  for  the 
study  of  picture-writing  on  a  totem  pole,  and  for  reading 
and  writing  a  rebus.  If  the  children  should  now  learn  the 
deaf-and-dumb  alphabet,  it  might  sometime  add  greatly  to 
their  ability  to  do  helpful  service. 

OPENING    TALK 

How  many  of  you  can  talk  by  making  signs  with  your 
fingers?  What  do  those  signs  stand  for?  Letters!  But 
l)eople  had  words  and  spoke  together  long  before  they 
had  letters  to  represent  the  sounds.  Can  you  think  of 
some  signs  you  would  make  to  some  one  who  could  not 
understand  English?  What  motion  would  you  make  if 
you  wanted  to  say  river?  hill?  something  to  eat? 

How  people  came  to  have  an  alphabet  with  which  to 
write  makes  our  story  to-day.  When  we  have  finished 
it  we  will  look  at  another  and  earlier  way  of  writing,  by 
pictures  and  signs,  and  see  if  you  can  make  out  the  rebus 
on  your  leaflet. 


THE  WRITTEN   WORD 

There  is  one  thing  that  the  Phoenicians  invented 
that  has  made  a  vast  difference  to  all  the  world.  It 
is  the  alphabet. 

Did  you  ever  wonder  why  those  little  letters  that 
make  up  our  words  came  to  represent  the  sounds 
we  give  them  when  we  read?  Before  you  went  to 
school  you  never  thought  of  letters  when  you  heard 
any  one  talking  or  when  you  talked  yourself.  But 
when  you  learned  to  read,  you  had  to  learn  the 
sound  of  all  those  letters  that  make  up  our  written 
words.  For  each  one  represents  some  sound  that 
we  make  with  our  throats,  our  tongues  and  our  lips, 
the  sounds  which  form  our  spoken  words. 

Savages  and  uncivilized  races  have  a  spoken  lan- 
guage, but  they  cannot  read  or  write.  Learning  to 
speak  has  been  a  natural  growth  in  human  beings, 
like  learning  to  use  their  hands,  but  the  art  of  writ- 
ing they  have  had  to  invent. 

Those  very  earliest  men  of  all  could  only  grunt 
and  make  sounds  something  like  the  sounds  the 
animals  made  all  about  them.  Some  of  those  sounds 
we  still  make  when  we  are  pleased  or  surprised  or 
hurt.  We  say,  ^'Ah!"  and  ^^Oh!"  if  we  are  sur- 
prised or  pleased,  ''Ugh!"  if  we  are  quite  displeased 
and  ''Umph!"  if  we  do  not  care  much  about  a  thing; 
and  it  was  by  making  sounds  like  these  that  the  first 

275 


276  THE  COMING   OF  MAN 

men  talked  together.  But  when  they  commenced 
to  think  more  clearly  they  found  it  necessary  to 
talk  to  others  about  their  thoughts,  and  they  needed 
more  than  those  simple  sounds.  So  they  helped  t6 
explain  their  thoughts  with  signs  that  they  made 
with  their  hands. 

That  is  the  sign  language,  and  it  is  still  used  by 
persons  who  wish  to  speak  together  and  yet  do  not 
know  the  same  language.  All  children  enjoy  play- 
ing with  sign  language  and  trying  to  see  how  well 
they  can  make  each  other  understand  what  they  are 
talking  about. 

Very  gradually  those  cave  men  commenced  to 
make  new  sounds  as  a  help  in  making  themselves 
understood.  Perhaps  they  tried  to  tell  about  the 
different  animals  they  saw  in  their  hunting  by  imi- 
tating their  cries.  In  that  way  they  learned  to 
change  the  sounds  by  moving  their  tongues  and 
lips.  This  soon  gave  them  words.  With  words  they 
could  say  much  more  than  with  sounds  alone.  With 
words  they  could  give  names  to  the  living  creatures 
and  all  the  objects  that  they  saw  about  them,  and 
when  they  began  to  make  other  words  which  de- 
scribed people  and  things  and  told  what  they  were 
doing,  then  they  began  to  have  a  spoken  language. 

Now  with  a  spoken  language  men  seem  to  have 
been  content  for  a  long,  long  time.  They  became 
quite  civilized  without  having  known  anything  of 
a  written  language.  If  they  wished  to  record  a  fact, 
they  represented  it  by  drawings,  as  the  English 
found  our  North  American  Indians  doing  when  they 
came  here. 


THE  WRITTEN   WORD  277 

All  uncivilized  peoples  use  picture  writing,  for 
they  have  never  learned  any  other  way.  Even  those 
early  cave  men  made  pictures.  Some  have  been 
found  in  the  caves  they  used  to  inhabit,  and  the 
drawing  is  done  so  well  that  we  can  easily  understand 
what  animals  those  rough  and  savage  men  were 
trying  to  represent.  They  drew,  too,  with  a  sharply 
pointed  rock  upon  bone  or  ivory,  which  was  a  much 
harder  way  to  draw  than  your  way,  with  a  pencil 
and  paper. 

As  men  began  to  live  in  tribes  and  afterward  in 
nations,  they  wished  to  record  their  deeds;  but  the 
only  way  they  had  was  by  this  ancient  way  of  pic- 
tures. Even  such  a  great  and  civilized  nation  as  the 
Egyptians  recorded  their  deeds  by  picture  writing. 
You  must  have  seen  their  hieroglyphics  in  the 
museums.  But  you  could  never  imagine  what  they 
meant,  because  their  hieroglyphics  are  not  simple 
pictures  telling  about  simple  objects,  but  long 
records  of  many  deeds  told  by  mixing  pictures  with 
symbols  much  in  the  way  we  make  up  a  rebus.  As 
time  went  on  the  Egyptians  used  fewer  pictures 
and  more  symbols,  and  many  of  the  symbols  repre- 
sented sounds;  but  further  than  that  they  never 
went. 

Now,  when  the  Phoenician  traders  came  sailing 
along  in  the  Mediterranean  they  found  that  the 
Egyptians  were  far  more  advanced  than  any  of  the 
other  peoples  with  whom  they  traded.  Being  quick 
to  learn  new  and  better  ways  of  doing  things,  and 
observing  how  the  Egyptians  made  their  records, 
the  Phoenicians  learned  to  use  the  Egyptian  writ- 


278  THE   COMING   OF  MAN 

ing  and  to  spread  this  knowledge  among  the  other 
nations. 

But  they  soon  found  all  those  pictures  and  symbols 
too  cumbersome  to  use  in  their  trade,  and  no  wonder; 
for  how  could  the  Phoenician  merchant  in  Tyre  send 
a  definite  order,  made  out  like  a  rebus,  to  the  miners 
in  the  tin  mine  in  Britain.  It  took  too  long  to  make, 
and  it  was  too  hard  to  read. 

Business  men  could  not  spend  time  writing  orders 
that  at  best  were  puzzling,  even  in  those  long-ago 
days.  So  they  invented  a  simpler  method.  They 
changed  the  Egyptian  symbols  into  simpler  forms, 
choosing  one  to  stand  for  each  sound  that  they  made 
in  their  words.  Twenty- two  plain  little  symbols 
they  made,  and  these  put  together  in  different  ways 
represented  all  their  words.  We  call  such  symbols 
the  alphabet.  These  little  symbolic  sounds  having 
been  agreed  upon,  the  merchants  in  Tyre  could 
send  definite  and  simple  orders  to  their  miners,  their 
traders  and  their  sailors,  which  would  be  understood 
and  obeyed.     So  their  business  prospered. 

Now  the  Greeks  at  this  time  were  marvelous  story 
tellers.  They  imagined  that  every  different  thing 
in  nature  was  the  work  of  some  god  or  goddess. 
They  imagined,  too,  pretty  stories  to  explain  why 
nature  is  as  it  is.  They  had  poets  who  told  these 
stories  and  who  sang  long  songs  of  the  wondrous 
deeds]  performed  by  their  heroes.  But  as  they  had 
no  way  to  write  these  things  down,  they  could  only 
preserve  them  by  committing  them  to  memory. 
Bards  went  about  from  place  to  place  singing  and 
reciting  the  stories  of  the  gods  and  goddesses  and 


THE   WRITTEN   WORD  279 

of  the  heroes.  In  this  way  the  tales  were  handed 
down  from  father  to  son. 

When  the  Phoenician  traders  came  with  their  neat 
httle  letters  arranged  into  written  words,  you  can 
imagine  how  eagerly  the  Greeks  seized  the  idea, 
and  how  quickly  they  adapted  those  letters  to  suit 
their  own  sounds  and  words,  by  dropping  some  and 
adding  others,  as  their  spoken  language  demanded. 

With  their  alphabet  arranged  to  represent  all  the 
sounds  that  they  made,  and  grouped  to  represent  the 
spoken  words,  the  Greeks  wrote  down  their  stories  and 
their  poems.  They  became  great  writers  and  thinkers, 
and  also  great  artists.  Everything  they  made  and 
wrote  they  tried  to  make  beautiful  and  noble.  ' '  Noth- 
ing too  much"  was  the  motto  they  went  by,  and 
they  tried  to  do  everything  in  a  symmetrical  way, 
without  exaggeration  and  without  excess. 

From  telling  the  stories  about  the  gods  who,  they 
thought,  represented  everything  in  nature,  they 
learned  to  love  nature  itself.  They  studied  the 
forms  in  the  world  about  them  and  tried  to  represent 
truly  the  beauty  of  what  they  saw.  They  thought 
about  the  beauty  and  wonder  of  the  world  and  how 
it  was  made;  how  it  could  be  helped  by  good  and 
lovely  thoughts  and  deeds,  and  how  marred  by  bad 
and  unlovely  ones.  Their  statues  are  the  most 
beautiful  that  have  ever  been  made,  their  temples  the 
finest  type  of  architecture,  and  their  writings  some 
of  the  best  things  we  have  in  all  literature. 

Because  of  the  high  endeavor  of  these  Greeks  they 
have  become  the  teachers  of  all  the  rest  of  Europe. 
Their  alphabet  it  was  that  the  Romans  took,  and, 


280  THE   COMING   OF  MAN 

having  made  the  letters  straighter  and  simpler, 
they  passed  them  on  to  us.  The  very  word  *'  alpha- 
bet" which  we  use  is  made  from  the  names  of  the 
first  two  Greek  letters,  alpha,  beta. 

The  Hebrews  were  another  nation  that  adopted 
the  Phoenician  alphabet  and  changed  it  to  suit 
their  own  spoken  language.  They  were  of  the  same 
race  as  the  Phoenicians,  but  their  worship  had 
elevated  them  above  those  neighboring  merchant 
people  of  Tyre  and  Sidon.  These  trading  Phoeni- 
cians were  rich  in  goods,  in  gold  and  silver  and 
tin,  in  amber  and  silks  and  spices;  but  the  Hebrews 
were  rich  in  thoughts  and  in  their  love  of  the  unseen 
Spirit  who  '^made  the  world  and  all  that  therein 
is."  They  knew  that  He  had  made  them  and  they 
tried  to  find  out  His  will  and  to  do  it.  They,  too, 
wrote  their  thoughts,  so  that,  like  the  Greeks,  the 
Hebrews  have  given  to  the  world  a  great  literature. 
It  is  largely  found  in  the  Bible,  their  sacred  book 
and  ours,  for  it  has  come  down  to  us  from  that  time 
long  ago  when  it  was  first  written. 

For  a  long  time  people  have  been  writing  their 
thoughts,  and  the  world  contains  many  books  which 
tell  us  the  thoughts  of  others.  These  may  be  a 
great  help  in  our  lives  or  they  may  do  us  harm^  ac- 
cording as  the  thoughts  of  the  writers  are  noble  and 
high  or  low  and  unworthy.  Books  can  be  good 
friends  or  they  can  be  bad  friends.  When  we  choose 
the  best  books  to  read  we  are  filling  our  minds  with 
the  best  thoughts.  When  a  good  book  is  written  it 
lives  on  and  on,  often  influencing  the  minds  of 
generations  of  men  and  women. 


LESSON   34 
THE   STORY   OF   STEAM 

MEMORY  VERSE 

Let  the  favor  of  the  Lord  our  God  be  upon  us; 
And  estabhsh  thou  the  work  of  our  hands  upon  us; 
Yea,  the  work  of  our  hands  establish  thou  it. 

Ps.  90:17 

The  Purpose 

This  lesson  is  given  to  open  the  eyes  of  the  children 
to  the  extraordinary  use  man  has  been  able  to  make  of 
such  comparatively  simple  things  in  nature  as  rocks  and 
water.  That  these  things  always  existed  on  the  earth 
with  the  same  laws  that  they  have  now,  and  only  awaited 
the  thoughtful  notice  of  man  to  become  his  most  useful 
servant,  is  the  special  lesson  to  be  drawn. 

The  prayer  in  the  memory  verse  may  well  be  used 
with  the  thought  of  man's  many  inventions  in  mind. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

The  story  of  the  progress  of  mankind  is  here  brought 
up  to  modern  times  by  the  story  of  steam.  The  children 
should  be  made  to  realize  how  simple  a  thing  steam  seems 
to  be  when  looked  at  without  thought;  and  yet  what  an 
extraordinary  force  it  has  proved  to  be  because  it  was 
looked  upon  with  thought.  The  lesson  that  the  common 
things  often  bring  the  greatest  blessings  will  be  repeated 
in  other  forms.  It  should  be  impressed  upon  the  child's 
mind. 

281 


282  THE   COMING   OF   MAN 

How  rapid  man's  progress  has  been  in  recent  times  will 
be  miderstood  even  by  young  children  when  they  realize 
that  every  mile  of  railroad  in  the  world  has  been  built 
since  1814.  The  same  thought  may  be  carried  into  the 
next  lesson  and  applied  to  electrical  inventions. 

Hand  Work 

Encourage  the  pupils  to  think  out  for  themselves  what 
they  shall  write  on  each  of  the  topics  suggested  on  page  4 
of  the  leaflet.  Let  one  member  of  the  class  tell  the  story 
of  Watt  and  the  teakettle  when  the  work  is  inspected  the 
following  Sunday. 

OPENING   TALK 

What  moves  a  railroad  train?  What  moves  the  engine? 
Can  you  think  of  a  world  in  which  there  are  no  trains  of 
cars?  It  is  not  so  long  ago  that  just  such  a  world  as  that 
was  the  one  people  had  always  known.  The  genius  of 
one  man  brought  about  this  great  change,  and  the  sub- 
stance that  he  used,  water,  was  the  one  which  has  done 
so  much  to  make  over  our  world. 


THE   STORY   OF   STEAM 

By  the  time  the  alphabet  was  invented  and  the 
most  advanced  nations  along  the  Mediterranean  had 
begun  to  use  it,  they  had  begun  to  use  iron  also. 
With  the  use  of  the  sharp  iron  implements  the  skill 
of  the  people  became  greater  and  greater,  and  as  their 
skill  increased  the  quickness  of  the  mind  increased 
also.  They  began  to  inquire  more  and  more  into  the 
nature  of  those  mysterious  forces  which  they  could 
feel  and  use  but  could  not  see.  In  this  way  the  race 
of  mankind  had  been  going  to  school.  Nature  had 
been  the  teacher,  and  they  learned  well  the  lessons 
she  was  trying  to  teach  them. 

The  cave  man,  partly  covered  with  a  lion's  skin, 
would  not  think  much:  for  he  did  not  know  much. 
Even  the  lake  dweller,  dressed  in  a  coarse  linen  cloth, 
would  only  look  out  over  the  lake  and  wonder  what 
luck  he  would  have  in  his  fishing  the  next  day. 

But  the  civilized  and  cultured  Greek,  dressed  in  a 
closely  woven  tunic  of  the  softest  wool,  would  look 
about  him  with  seeing  eyes  and  with  a  bus}^  mind. 
As  the  rays  of  the  setting  sun  fell  upon  a  plant  of 
honeysuckle  growing  near  him,  he  would  see  what  a 
graceful  decoration  it  would  make  about  the  base  of 
a  golden  bowl,  and  he  would  use  what  he  had  seen 
to  make  more  beautiful  the  common  things  of  daily 
life. 

283 


284  THE  COMING   OF  MAN 

The  Hebrew  shepherd  would  look  up  into  the  clear 
vault  of  the  heavens  and  watch  the  stars  come  out 
one  by  one,  until  the  night  was  wondrous  with  their 
clear  and  sparkling  light.  But  his  inner  eyes  would 
see  beyond  the  stars,  and  his  spirit  would  feel  the 
nearness  of  the  unseen  Friend,  the  Maker  of  it  all. 

So  by  thought,  which  written  language  has  pre- 
served, mankind  has  grown.  All  the  great  ones  who 
ever  lived  have  become  great  because  their  thoughts 
were  busy  upon  things  of  importance,  and  their  eyes 
looked  searchingly  into  the  truth  of  God's  creations. 
They  became  inventors  and  discoverers,  poets  and 
prophets. 

Now  as  the  discovery  of  iron  and  the  invention  of 
writing  sent  those  early  nations  that  learned  to  use 
them  so  far  ahead  of  the  others,  and  as  the  invention 
of  printing  has  helped  still  more,  the  use  of  steam  has 
also  given  the  civilized  world  another  great  push  for- 
ward, by  making  it  possible  to  do  much  more  than 
could  be  done  in  any  other  way.  Through  the  use  of 
steam  articles  of  daily  need,  such  as  our  clothes,  ciu" 
furniture  and  our  dishes,  and  books  containing  the 
thoughts  of  great  men,  can  be  manufactured  by 
machinery  in  great  quantities,  and  so  cheaply  as  to 
come  within  the  reach  of  all.  Because  of  steam,  too, 
commerce  and  travel  are  made  so  much  easier  that 
people  of  different  nations  not  only  send  to  each 
other  great  quantities  of  goods,  but  travel  about, 
visit  each  other,  see  the  different  countries,  and  so 
become  more  highly  developed. 

Just  as  the  people  about  the  Mediterranean  Sea 
became  most  civilized  through  their  commerce  and 


THE  STORY   OF  STEAM  285 

their  travel,  so  the  great  ease  with  which  steam 
enables  the  trading  and  traveling  of  the  present  day 
to  be  done,  has  advanced  the  nations  of  the  whole 
world. 

Useful  inventions  made  in  one  country  are  pro- 
cured and  used  in  other  countries.  Never  a  book  is 
written  but  may  be  translated  and  sent  to  all  other 
nations.  Because  of  the  ease  of  manufacture  all  the 
people  may  now  have  the  books  and  comforts  that 
only  the  well-to-do  could  procure  a  century  or  more 
ago. 

Now  the  ancients  knew  about  steam,  and  used  it 
in  ways  to  frighten  or  amuse  the  people,  but  it  was 
centuries  before  the  thought  of  one  man  found  a  way 
to  put  it  to  practical  use. 

You  have  all  heard  how  the  boy,  James  Watt,  used 
to  amuse  himself  watching  the  steam  come  out  of 
the  nose  of  the  teakettle  and  seeing  what  it  would  do. 
His  eyes  were  quick  to  see  that  the  steam  lifted  the 
lid  of  the  teakettle,  because  steam  filled  a  great  deal 
of  space  and  wanted  to  fill  more.  He  also  saw  that 
that  same  space-filling  steam  could  be  reduced  to  a 
few  drops  of  water  again  as  soon  as  it  was  chilled. 

In  after  years  the  thoughtful  play  of  his  boyhood 
helped  him  to  invent  an  engine  that  would  harness 
steam  to  do  work  that  it  would  take  thousands  of 
people  and  horses  to  do.  This  boy,  who  used  to 
spend  his  playtime  doing  mathematical  problems, 
watching  steam,  making  experiments  in  chemistry 
and  constructing  useful  machines,  became  such  a 
benefactor  to  the  world  as  few  could  ever  hope  to  be. 
He  invented  the  steam  engine. 


286  THE   COMING   OF  MAN 

Although  Watt  and  all  his  friends  knew,  at  the 
time,  that  his  invention  was  very  important,  they 
could  never  have  dreamed  what  great  changes  would 
come  because  of  it.  When  he  first  invented  the 
steam  engine  it  was  used  to  do  work  in  just  one  place, 
that  is,  it  was  a  stationary  engine.  After  a  time  some 
one  thought  to  have  the  engine  itself  move  as  it  does 
now  in  the  railway  locomotive.  Watt  himself  had 
said  it  could  be  used  for  that  purpose.  He  lived  long 
enough  to  take  a  trip  on  a  steamboat,  and  to  hear  that 
some  one  was  trying  to  use  his  engine  for  a  steam 
carriage.  Whenever  you  see  a  railroad  train  you  will 
think  how  well  that  attempt  has  succeeded. 

The  stationary  steam  engine,  with  its  appliances, 
does  the  work  that  the  hands  of  men,  women  and 
even  children  used  to  do  in  mills  and  factories;  the 
steamboat  makes  travel  upon  water  faster  and  safer ; 
and  the  steam  locomotive  draws  a  load  a  thousand 
times  heavier  than  •  strong  horses  oould  draw,  and 
does  it  with  much  greater  speed. 

Now  what  is  this  steam  which  people  had  known 
about  for  so  long  but  which  the  thoughtful  young 
Watt  discovered  could  be  harnessed  to  do  most  of 
our  work? 

You  remember,  do  you  not,  that  it  is  another  form 
of  water?  It  is  water  heated  so  hot  that  it  evaporates 
rapidly  and  fills  a  much  larger  space  than  it  did  be- 
fore. So  that  very  same  water,  which  does  such  a 
work  in  making  over  the  surface  of  the  earth,  and 
changing  about  the  minerals  hidden  in  the  ground,  is, 
when  turned  into  steam,  harnessed  by  man  and  used 
to  help  him  in  his  work. 


THE   STORY   OF  STEAM  287 

Iron,  coal  and  water  are  three  most  useful  servants 
working  together  under  man's  thought  and  direction, 
enabling  him  to  do  great  things.  Without  coal,  the 
great  iron  and  steel  engines  could  not  be  made,  nor 
could  there  be  water  enough  converted  into  steam  to 
fill  them. 

Rocks  and  water,  such  common  things,  yet  what 
use  we  make  of  them !  What  a  power  to  help  is  the 
black  metal  in  the  rocks;  the  black,  glistening  rock 
that  will  burn;  and  the  water  that  is  so  abundant 
on  our  earth. 

Do  you  not  suppose  that  the  world  contains  many 
more  gifts  as  useful,  if  we  could  only  find  what  they 
are? 

But  that  is  man's  duty,  to  search  throughout  the 
world  with  seeing  eyes  and  a  reverent  mind,  looking 
for  the  gifts  God  has  given  to  us  in  nature,  and  for 
the  laws  which  enable  us  to  understand  and  use 
them. 


LESSON   35 
THE   STORY   OF  ELECTRICITY 

MEMORY  VERSE 

Ask,  and  it  shall  be  given  you;  seek,  and  ye  shall  find;  knock, 
and  it  shall  be  opened  unto  you:  for  every  one  that  asketh  receiveth; 
and  he  that  seeketh  findeth;  and  to  him  that  knocketh  it  shall  be 
opened. 

Matt.  7:  7,  8 

The  Purpose 

That  the  treasures  with  which  God  has  filled  the  world 
are  here  waiting  to  be  used  and  can  be  found  by  the 
earnest  seeker  is  a  lesson  well  adapted  to  the  questioning 
minds  of  children  from  nine  to  ten  years  of  age.  The 
added  truth  that  God  bids  us  seek  is  the  special  purpose 
of  this  lesson. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

The  lessons  to  be  drawn  from  the  story  of  electricity 
are  much  the  same  as  those  from  the  story  of  steam. 
Here,  however,  stress  should  be  laid  not  only  upon  the 
fact  that  the  laws  have  existed  from  the  beginning,  but 
also  upon  the  truth  that  what  we  earnestly  search  for 
we  shall  find.  The  teacher  should  provide  herself  with 
one  of  the  sets  of  articles  to  be  rubbed,  which  is  given  in 
the  list  of  the  handwork,  and  show  the  children  how 
the  electricity  was  obtained  that  amused  and  interested 
people  for  so  many  centuries. 

288 


THE   STORY   OF   ELECTRICITY  289 

Hand  Work 

The  children  are  to  try  as  manj^  of  the  experiments 
given  on  the  list  as  possible,  putting  a  cross  beside  the 
names  of  those  objects  they  have  electrified. 

OPENING   TALK 

You  may  each  tell  me  how  many  things  you  have  in 
your  homes  that  employ  electricity.  Can  you  remember 
when  your  family  first  owned  and  used  any  of  these? 

How  men  thought  and  asked  questions  of  nature  until 
they  found  out  how  to  store  up  electricity,  and  how  many 
ways  they  have  found  of  using  it  make  a  real  story. 


THE   STORY  OF  ELECTRICITY 

For  a  much  longer  time  than  they  had  seen 
steam,  people  had  seen  lightning,  but  they  did  not 
know  what  it  was  or  how  it  came  to  be.  They 
thought  that  it  was  sent  to  the  earth  by  an  angry 
god,  who  used  it  to  show  his  displeasure.  Even  such 
civilized  nations  as  the  Greeks  and  Romans  be- 
lieved that,  and  they  represented  their  principal  god, 
Zeus  or  Jupiter,  as  holding  the  thunderbolts.  The 
Hebrews  thought  thunder  was  the  voice  of  Jehovah. 
Later  on,  when  people  became  Christians,  they 
still  looked  upon  the  lightning  as  something  mys- 
terious and  not  at  all  to  be  explained  or  understood. 

None  of  these  people  ever  dreamed  what  the 
lightning  really  was.  Little  did  they  think  that 
the  peculiar  power  which  they  had  noticed  in  amber 
when  it  was  rubbed  was  the  same  power  that  made 
the  flashes  of  hghtning.  Most  of  the  ancient  peo- 
ples were  acquainted  with  amber  and  they  had 
noticed  its  peculiar  qualities.  As  early  as  the  be- 
ginning of  their  trade,  the  Phoenician  merchants 
used  to  carry  amber  to  the  different  cities  around 
the  Mediterranean.  The  Greeks  named  it  ''elec- 
tron," or,  ''the  shining  thing,"  and  they  made 
up  a  beautiful  story  about  the  pieces  of  bright 
amber.  They  said  that  they  were  the  tears  of 
the  sisters  of  Phaethon.    Have  you  ever  heard  the 

290 


THE   STORY   OF   ELECTRICITY  291 

story  of  Phaethon,  how  he  drove  the  chariot  of  the 
sun? 

Now,  amber  is  really  pitch,  —  pitch  that  fell  from 
great  pine  trees  that  grew  long  before  man  lived 
upon  the  world.  Whenever  these  pine  trees  grew 
near  the  shore,  the  pitch,  dropping  into  the  water, 
or  being  washed  into  it,  was  covered  over  and  so 
preserved  for  us  in  nature's  book.  But  the  Greeks 
knew  nothing  about  that,  they  only  knew  that  it  was 
a  strange  substance.  They  thought  that  it  must 
have  something  to  do  with  a  god;  for,  when  they 
rubbed  it  to  polish  it,  there  seemed  to  be  something 
alive  in  it,  —  something  that  would  reach  out  and 
take  hold  of  little  particles  of  dust  or  straw  and 
draw  them  to  itself.  The  little  particles  sprang  to 
it  and  stuck  for  a  moment  to  its  sides. 

Did  you  ever  rub  an  amber  bead  on  a  piece  of 
woolen  cloth  and  see  how  bits  of  paper  would  fly 
to  it?  If  you  do  not  have  amber,  use  a  rod  or  plate 
of  glass,  a  stick  of  sealing  wax,  or  a  rubber  comb. 
Have  you  ever  seen  your  hair  follow  the  comb  some 
cold  winter  day,  or  made  sparks  come  by  scuffing 
across  the  carpet  and  then  touching  some  one  with 
your  finger  tip? 

As  people  came  to  see  more  and  more  of  such 
strange  effects  from  different  substances,  they 
studied  into  the  matter  until  they  learned  to  col- 
lect this  amazing  something  in  such  quantities 
that  it  could  be  stored  away  and  kept. 

It  is  no  wonder  that  the  Greeks-  could  not  explain 
what  they  saw.  Indeed,  it  has  taken  thousands  of 
years  for  men  to  find  out  what  a  strange  power  it  is 


292  THE  COMING   OF  MAN 

that  makes  the  amber  act  as  it  does  when  rubbed. 
We  call  that  power  electricity,  from  the  name  the 
Greeks  gave  to  amber;  but,  although  we  know  how 
to  produce  it,  how  to  store  it  and  how  to  make  it 
work  for  us,  we  do  not  know  even  yet  what  elec- 
tricity really  is. 

Now,  while  people  were  trying  to  learn  more 
about  this  extraordinary  power  to  which  they  gave 
the  name  electricity,  there  was  a  man  living  in 
America  who  made  an  important  discovery.  His 
quick  eyes  told  him  that  the  jagged  flash  of  light, 
which  leaped  through  the  air  from  one  to  another  of 
those  surfaces  that  had  been  charged  with  elec- 
tricity, was  just  like  a  flash  of  lightning.  He  de- 
termined to  find  out  if  it  could  be  true  that  the 
lightning,  one  of  the  greatest  mysteries  of  nature, 
could  be  caused  by  the  same  power  that  made  the 
tiny  flash  or  spark  in  the  electrical  instrimients  nien 
had  been  making. 

So  this  man,  Benjamin  Franklin,  went  out  of 
doors  when  a  thunderstorm  was  coming  on,  taking 
a  silk  kite  that  he  had  made  and  pointed  with  wire, 
a  silk  ribbon  which  he  tied  to  the  cord  of  the  kite, 
and  a  key  to  hang  upon  the  ribbon.  With  these  he 
hoped  to  coax  the  lightning  out  of  the  sky  and  bottle 
it  up  in  a  Leyden  jar. 

You  must  have  heard  the  stoiy,  and  know  that 
he  succeeded  in  proving  to  the  world  that  the  mys- 
terious lightning  was  electricity,  not  an  unknown 
thing  to  be  feared  and  dreaded,  but  a  force  of  nature 
that,  like  everything  else,  had  laws  of  its  own  to 
follow. 


THE  STORY  OF   ELECTRICITY  293 

The  story  of  electricity  is  even  more  marvelous 
than  that  of  steam.  We  have  come  to  depend  upon 
it  in  our  daily  life,  and  remarkable  are  the  things 
that  it  will  do.  Men  have  discovered  how  to  collect 
electricity,  how  to  store  it  and  to  measure  it.  They 
learned  too  what  wonderful  things  it  can  do  when  it 
is  harnessed  in  the  right  way.  Each  new  discovery 
about  the  laws  that  govern  it,  each  new  invention  of 
a  way  to  make  a  practical  use  of  it,  has  helped  to 
bring  about  even  better  ways,  for  many  wise  men 
are  using  all  their  thought  to  find  new  uses  still  for 
this  invisible  servant. 

Have  you  ever  seen  a  telegram  handed  in  at  the 
door  by  a  messenger  boy?  Do  you  know  what  that 
telegram  really  is,  and  how  the  words  came  to  be 
upon  that  slip  of  paper?  Or  how  do  you  think  it 
happens,  that  when  we  talk  through  the  telephone 
we  can  hear  our  friend's  voice  so  distinctly?  And 
what  is  it  that  makes  it  possible  for  us  to  hear  the 
voice  of  a  great  singer  coming  out  of  the  phono-v 
graph?  It  is  electricity  that  does  all  these  things, 
but  electricity  held  in  control  by  the  inventions  of 
men  who  have  studied  its  nature  and  its  laws. 

We  are  quite  used  to  seeing  wires  stretched  across 
poles  and  we  know  well  that  those  wires  carry  elec- 
tricity. We  know,  also,  that  wherever  those  wires 
go,  into  a  factory,  into  a  station,  or  into  a  house,  the 
electricity  which  the  wires  carry  will  be  made  to  do 
some  work.  Have  you  ever  thought  much  about 
those  wires  and  the  electricity  that  is  traveling  along 
them? 

That  little  box  by  your  telephone  holds  a  machine 


294  THE   COMING   OF   MAN 

that  i«  the  result  of  the  thoughts  of  generations  of 
men,  who  have  been  ready  to  give  up  their  own 
comfort  and  ease  in  Hfe,  in  order  to  search  out  new 
laws  in  nature,  and  apply  them  for  the  benefit  of 
mankind.  Some  of  these  have  thought  of  new  things 
that  could  be  done,  leaving  others  to  find  the  way, 
—  just  as  Watt  said  his  engine  ought  to  be  able  to 
move  a  carriage,  but  Stephenson  found  the  way  to 
make  it  do  so.  Many  other  men  have  seen  in  a  flash 
with  their  mind's  eye  some  new  way  to  use  an  old 
discovery. 

As  iron  and  coal  must  be  used  with  steam  to  make 
it  the  useful  servant  it  is,  so  electricity  could  not 
be  what  it  is  to  us  unless  we  had  learned  the  use  of 
certain  metals  and  minerals,  such  as  iron,  copper, 
platinum  and  carbon.  It  is  no  longer  a  plaything 
merely,  as  it  is  when  we  rub  amber  or  rubber  to  get 
its  effect;  not  something  frightful,  as  lightning  once 
seemed  to  be.  It  is  one  of  the  great  workers  of  the 
world. 

Perhaps  we  shall  not  always  need  in  making  elec- 
tricity just  what  we  need  at  the  present  time. 
Probably  thinking  men  from  year  to  year  will  find 
new  ways  that  are  simpler  and  better.  Perhaps 
some  boy  or  some  girl,  who  hears  or  reads  these 
words,  may  find  an  easier,*  quicker  way  to  do  some- 
thing that  we  now  look  upon  as  quite  wonderful. 

Samuel  Morse,  who  invented  the  telegraph,  and 
Alexander  Bell,  the  inventor  of  the  telephone, 
thought  that  electricity  must  always  travel  over  a 
wire  if  messages  were  to  be  sent  by  it;  but  Marconi, 
the  Italian  inventor,  has  found  that  he  can  make 


THE   STORY   OF   ELECTRICITY  295 

machines  that  will  send  and  receive  messages  with- 
out wire.  It  is  not  so  long  ago  that  Marconi,  then 
almost  a  boy,  startled  the  world  by  sending  across 
the  ocean  his  first  message  through  the  air.  Now, 
one  ship  in  trouble  can  be  helped  out  by  the  other 
ships  that  receive  its  '^wireless"  messages  of  dis- 
tress sent  through  the  air. 

A  person  living  in  the  world  to-day  can  receive  in 
a  few  moments  a  message  by  telegraph  from  a  friend 
Hving  more  than  a  thousand  miles  away.  He  can 
talk  by  telephone  with  a  friend  who  lives  even  three 
thousand  miles  away.  He  can  send  home  a  message 
under  the  ocean  by  cable,  if  he  is  travehng  in  Europe; 
and  he  can  even  send  word  back  to  his  family  when 
he  is  in  mid-ocean,  telling  them  that  he  is  safe  and 
well. 

He  can  travel  on  trains  that  go  so  swiftly  it 
takes  our  breath  away  to  watch  them;  he  can 
travel  on  electric  cars  or  in  an  automobile.  He 
can  cross  the  ocean  in  great  safety  and  comfort  in 
a  swiftly  moving  steamship;  he  can  even  travel 
under  the  ocean  in  a  submarine,  and  in  the  air  in 
an  airplane. 

Does  it  seem  as  if  more  than  this  could  be  done? 
Yet  nature  still  beckons  to  the  mind  and  to  the  seeing 
eyes  of  mankind.  She  has  many  more  secrets  to 
tell  to  those  who  desire  to  learn  them.  Many  of 
the  boys  and  girls  of  to-day  will  join  the  ranks  of 
those  who,  by  their  thought  and  devotion,  have 
benefited  the  lives  of  all  mankind.  It  was  only  a 
short  time  ago  that  Marconi  was  a  boy,  and  think 
what  he  has  done! 


296  THE  COMING   OF  MAN 

Nature  has  a  reward  for  every  diligent  searcher 
after  her  truths.  Did  not  Jesus  say,  ''He  that  seek- 
eth,  findeth;  and  to  him  that  knocketh  it  shall  be 
opened"?    ■ 


LESSON  36 
SEARCHERS  AFTER  NATURE^S  TRUTHS 

MEMORY  VERSE 

Lives  of  great  men  all  remind  us 
We  can  make  our  lives  sublime, 

And,  departing,  leave  behind  us 
Footprints  on  the  sands  of  time. 

H.  W.  Longfellow 

The  Purpose 

This  lesson  serves  as  an  introduction  to  the  three 
lessons  on  astronomy  and  also  as  a  suggestion  to  the  chil- 
dren of  the  marvelous  power  that  God  has  given  to  the 
mind  of  man.  The  nearness  of  God  to  man,  leading  him 
ever  onward  through  his  mind  and  soul,  and  helping  him 
in  that  way  to  help  the  world  itself,  is  the  special  lesson 
to  be  given  the  children. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

This  lesson  should  be  given  in  such  a  way  as  to  awake 
the  child's  interest  in  thought  itself  —  the  thought  that 
is  able  to  prove  things  true  that  we  cannot  see  or  touch 
or  feel.  It  is  a  difficult  subject  for  their  comprehension, 
and  yet  it  is  felt  that  their  minds  can  take  the  mere  sug- 
gestion of  it  that  is  given  here.  If  the  lesson  is  given  to 
them  in  the  spirit  of  wonder,  they  will  learn  to  look  with 
wonder  toward  the  God-given  mind  of  man. 

The  brief  accounts  of  the  three  great  discoverers  help 
make  the  subject  concrete. 

297 


298  THE   COMING   OF  MAN 

The  opportunity  to  awaken  international  interest,  be- 
cause Poland,  Italy  and  England  gave  these  great  men 
to  the  world,  should  not  be  missed. 

Hand  Work 

Many  pupils  will  need  assistance  before  making  the 
lists  called  for  on  the  leaflet.  Let  the  preparation  be  a 
class  interest,  each  sharing  with  the  rest  his  present 
knowledge  of  inventors  or  discoverers,  the  teacher 
suggesting  the  names  of  one  or  more  about  whom  they 
may  learn. 

OPENING   TALK 

Name  some  of  the  great  men  our  own  country  has 
produced.  We  know  of  these  because  they  lived  in  our 
own  land  and  spoke  our  own  language.  Bui}  many  lands 
have  produced  great  men,  and  in  time,  no  matter  what 
language  they  spoke,  their  thoughts  and  discoveries  have 
gone  all  over  the  world.  Our  story  to-day  is  about  three 
of  these,  from  three  different  countries,  whom  we  shall 
want  to  remember. 


SEARCHERS   AFTER  NATURE'S   TRUTHS 

The  great  men  who  have  taught  us  the  uses  of 
steam  and  electricity  are  only  a  few  of  those  who  have 
spent  their  lives  in  searching  to  learn  the  laws  of 
nature,  those  laws  that  God  has  given  to  the  world, 
and  to  know  those  things  that  make  up  the  world' 
whether  gas,  or  rock,  or  plant,  or  living  creature,  or 
an  unseen  force. 

At  first  all  men  thought  the  earth  was  flat,  because 
the  Httle  we  can  see  at  one  time  looks  flat.  They 
believed  that  it  was  surrounded  by  a  mighty  ocean 
into  which  the  sun  sank  at  night,  and  out  of  which  it 
rose  again  on  the  other  side  in  the  morning.  They 
saw  the  sun  and  the  stars  rise  in  the  east,  move 
through  the  sky,  and  sink  out  of  sight  in  the  west. 
Why  should  they  not  beUeve  what  they  saw? 

Most  of  them  rested  content  with  taking  things 
to  be  just  what  they  appeared  to  be,  but  some  ques- 
tioned and  wondered.  ''What  is  the  world  ?  "  they 
thought.  ''What  is  the  sun,  and  what  are  all  those 
myriads  of  stars,  which  flash  and  twinkle  through 
the  nights,  and  which  seem  to  change  with  the  differ- 
ent seasons?" 

They  noticed  that  the  sun  did  not  seem  to  travel 
through  the  sky  along  the  same  path  among  the  stars 
month  by  month.  In  the  winter  it  was  much  nearer 
the  horizon  than  it  was  in  the  long,  summer  days. 

299 


300  THE   COMING   OF  MAN 

The  moon,  too,  was  always  changing  its  position, 
sometimes  travehng  low,  sometimes  high.  They 
noticed  that  it  changed  its  shape  from  day  to  day, 
from  a  thin  crescent  into  a  round,  full  moon,  then 
changing  back,  until  in  twenty-eight  days  it  would 
begin  again  as  a  narrow  silver  crescent  in  the  w^est. 
You  see  it  change  in  this  way  yourselves. 

All  those  things  they  pondered  over,  until  some 
whose  eyes  were  keen  to  notice  the  things  in  the 
world  as  well  as  those  in  the  sky,  and  whose  minds 
were  keen  to  think  about  what  they  saw,  concluded 
that  the  world  must  be  round  like  a  ball.  But  they 
still  thought  of  it  as  fixed  in  space,  with  the  sun, 
moon  and  stars  revolving  about  it.  They  believed 
that  the  world  was  the  center  of  all  things;  and  when 
they  noticed  that  the  stars  did  not  seem  to  change 
their  positions  in  regard  to  each  other,  they  thought 
that  those  twinkling  stars  must  be  fastened  to  the 
dome  of  the  heavens,  which  itself  revolved  around 
the  earth,  carrying  the  stars  with  it. 

Men  thought  this  for  hundreds  of  years.  If  you 
had  Uved  then,  you  would  have  been  taught  just 
what  the  rest  believed.  But  you  might  have  been 
one  of  those  who  saw  more  clearly  than  the  others, 
and  could  not  believe  in  a  fixed  earth  with  a  revolving 
dome  above  it.  You  might  have  wondered  about  it, 
and  tried  to  understand  it  better. 

That  is  just  what  Copernicus  did.  He  was  a 
searcher  for  truth  who  was  born  in  Poland.  He 
watched  the  movements  of  the  sun,  the  moon  and 
the  stars,  and  after  thinking  about  them  for  a  long 
time  he  announced  to  the  world  that  the  sun  was  the 


SEARCHERS  AFTER  NATURE'S   TRUTHS    301 

center  of  the  solar  system,  and  that  the  earth  did  not 
stand  still,  but  moved  around  the  sun  as  did  all  the 
other  planets. 

''What  makes  the  sun  and  stars  seem  to  move 
around  the  earth,"  he  said,  ''is  that  we  are  moving. 
It  is  just  the  same  if  you  are  riding  in  a  carriage. 
The  trees  and  houses  seem  to  go  past  you  in  the 
opposite  direction  from  the  way  you  are  going. 
You  know  they  do  not  move,  it  is  you  who  are 
moving.  In  the  same  way  it  is  the  motion  of  our 
earth  itself  which  makes  the  stars  seem  to  move 
around  it." 

Great  was  the  consternation  created  in  the  world! 
Such  a  thought  was  wicked !  It  could  not  be  believed ! 
"How  could  it  be  possible,"  men  said,  "for  our 
earth  to  be  anything  but  the  center  of  the  universe? 
Was  it  not  made  for  us,  and  was  not  the  sun  made  to 
warm  us  and  light  us  by  day,  and  the  moon  and 
stars  to  give  us  hght  by  night?"  So  in  their  self- 
importance  they  would  not  listen  to  the  thought  of 
that  great  searcher  after  truth. 

The  book  in  which  Copernicus  set  down  what  he 
had  found  was  printed  and  placed  in  his  hands  just 
before  he  died.  Some  people  read  it  and  beheved 
what  it  stated.  One  of  these  was  Galileo,  an  Italian, 
who  was  born  in  Italy  just  twenty-four  years  after 
the  death  of  Copernicus.  He  heard  that  the  Dutch 
had  found  a  way  to  make  distant  objects  look  nearer 
by  using  lenses.  He  grasped  the  idea  at  once  and 
made  his  first  telescope.  With  it  he  searched  the 
heavens  for  more  knowledge  of  the  sun,  moon  and 
planets.    How  Galileo  has  opened  the  eyes  of  man- 


302  THE  COMING   OF  MAN 

kind!  What  wonderful  things  men  have  been  able 
to  do  and  to  learn  because  he  showed  them  how  to 
see  into  space! 

Did  you  ever  look  through  an  opera  glass  or  a  spy- 
glass and  see  how  near  it  seems  to  bring  a  distant 
object?  Perhaps  you  have  had  the  good  fortune  to 
look  through  a  telescope  at  the  moon,  and  to  have 
seen  some  of  the  mountains  and  valleys  that  Galileo 
first  saw  upon  its  surface  and  told  the  world  about. 
There  are  much  larger  telescopes  now,  and  they  bring 
those  distant  orbs  much  nearer  to  us  than  the  small 
telescope  of  Galileo  could;  nevertheless,  he  showed 
us  the  way  to  see  beyond  the  world  we  live  in,  and  to 
see  under  standingly. 

By  studying  the  sun  and  the  planets  he  was  con- 
vinced that  Copernicus  was  right  in  saying  that  the 
sun  was  the  center  and  the  earth  moved  around  it, 
and  he  boldly  proclaimed  this  in  his  teaching.  For 
daring  to  state,  and  for  trying  to  prove,  this  new 
truth,  so  different  from  what  was  generally  believed, 
Galileo  was  persecuted  and  put  in  prison.  But  his 
statement  was  true,  and  in  time  everybody  believed  it. 
Those  people  who  opposed  Galileo  could  not  stop 
the  progress  of  knowledge,  for  all  their  trying. 
''Truth  is  mighty  and  shall  prevail,"  and  the  truth 
about  the  revolution  of  the  earth  around  the  sun  did 
prevail.  What  Copernicus  discovered  and  Galileo 
proved  with  his  telescope  is  now  taught  to  boys  and 
girls  in  the  schools  of  all  civilized  countries. 

There  is  one  more  of  these  searchers  after  truth 
who  discovered  a  great  law  of  our  universe  and  whose 
name  is   associated   with   that   of   Copernicus  and 


SEARCHERS  AFTER  NATURE'S   TRUTHS    303 

Galileo.     It  is  Sir  Isaac  Newton,  who  was  born  in 
England  the  very  year  that  Galileo  died. 

Perhaps  you  have  heard  the  story  of  Sir  Isaac 
Newton  sitting  under  the  apple  tree,  and  asking  him- 
self the  question  any  child  might  ask:  ''What  makes 
an  apple  fall  to  the  ground?"  And  this  searcher  for 
truth  thought  about  that  falUng  apple  and  other 
motions  of  bodies  on  the  earth  and  of  the  planets  out 
in  space,  until  he  found  an  answer.  He  said  there 
was  an  invisible  force  everywhere  pulling  particles  of 
matter  toward  each  other,  moving  smaller  bodies 
toward  larger  ones.  This  force  he  called  gravitation. 
He  knew  that  if  he  was  right  about  the  pull  of  that 
force,  he  could  prove  it  from  the  movement  of  the 
moon  around  our  earth,  and  of  the  planets  around 
the  sun. 

Do  you  think  that  was  easy  to  do?  Oh,  no!  Even 
after  his  keen  mind  had  thought  out  a  reason  for 
what  he  saw,  Newton  had  to  work  very  hard  to  prove 
his  law.  He  covered  whole  pages  with  figures.  How 
long  do  you  think  his  patience  lasted?  One  year? 
Two?  Three?  For  seventeen  years  Newton  kept  on 
thinking  and  trying,  and  still  he  had  not  proved  what 
he  believed  to  be  true. 

One  day  he  heard  that  another  scientist  had  found 
a  new  measurement  for  the  curve  of  the  earth's  sur- 
face, more  accurate  than  before,  which  would  give  a 
different  number  for  the  mass  or  weight  of  the  earth. 
Newton  hurried  home,  put  that  new  number  into 
his  pages  of  figures,  worked  his  long  problem  all  over 
again,  —  and  this  time  it  was  right.  He  had  proved 
his  great  law  of  gravitation,  and  helped  people  to 


304  THE  COMING   OF  MAN 

understand  the  mighty  unseen  force  which  keeps 
each  planet  in  its  course,  and  holds  all  the  vast 
systems  of  suns  and  worlds  to  regular  paths  and 
orbits. 

These  men,  and  those  who  came  after  them,  who 
spent  their  lives  searching  for  truth,  have  found  how 
the  earth  and  the  planets  move,  and  they  can  tell 
just  where  in  the  sky  they  will  be  at  any  time.  You 
have  only  to  see  a  page  of  the  neat  little  figures  with 
which  these  thinkers  calculate  the  orbits  of  the 
planets,  to  be  filled  with  wonder  at  the  power  that 
God  has  given  to  the  human  mind;  for  these  men 
have  gone  beyond  the  world  with  their  thought,  and 
they  have  proved  the  truth  of  things  that  they  can 
neither  touch,  nor  feel,  nor  see. 

They  seem  so  far  above  ordinary  mortals  that  we 
look  up  to  them  with  amazement;  they  seem  like 
different  beings  from  us.  But  no!  They  were  chil- 
dren once,  looking  just  like  ordinary  children.  Some 
of  them  were  delicate  and  sickly ;  some  were  poor,  so 
poor  that  they  had  to  work  hard  at  their  daily  tasks 
before  they  could  begin  to  do  the  work  they  loved 
and  dreamed  of  day  by  day.  Some  of  them  were  well 
educated  in  the  schools,  but  others  gained  by  them- 
selves from  books  and  experiments  that  knowledge 
which  led  them  on  to  success. 

Many  of  these  boys  had  mothers  whose  love  and 
ambition  for  them  made  them  what  they  were.  Some 
had  sisters,  daughters,  and  nieces,  without  whose 
patient  and  loving  help  they  could  not  have  suc- 
ceeded. And  many  of  these  wonderful  minds  be- 
longed to  women:  Maria  Mitchell,  the  astronomer, 


SEARCHERS   AFTER  NATURE'S   TRUTHS    305 

and  Madam  Curie,  who  discovered  radium,  are  among 
the  number. 

So  God  blesses  the  world  of  men  and  women 
through  the  men  and  women  themselves,  —  the  men 
and  women  who  were  once  children.  In  every  child, 
then,  lies  the  possibility  of  becoming  one  of  those 
world  helpers;  and  every  child,  whether  or  not  he 
becomes  himself  a  discoverer  of  new  truth,  may  learn 
to  keep  an  open  mind  to  receive  the  discoveries  made 
by  those  who  are  searchers  after  truth. 


LESSON   37 
GOD»S   GIFT    OF   SUNLIGHT 

MEMORY  VERSE 

There  is  one  glory  of  the  sun,  and  another  glory  of  the  moon, 
and  another  glory  of  the  stars;  for  one  star  differeth  from  another  star 
in  glory.  1  Cor.  15:  41 

The  Purpose 

These  lessons  on  the  heavenl}^  bodies  (37-39)  follow 
those  which  relate  the  progress  of  mankind  as  a  natural 
sequence,  because  thej^  give  the  results  of  the  power  of 
thought  to  which  man  has  attained. 

They  can  do  little  more  than  to  awaken  in  the  minds 
of  the  children  wonder  and  amazement  at  the  vastness  of 
God's  universe.  But  a  reverent  wonder  aroused  in  child- 
liood  over  the  heavenh'  bodies  will  ripen  in  later  years  to 
a  breadth  of  mind  which  of  itself  will  insure  truth-seeking. 

The  religious  purpose  of  this  lesson  is  to  acquaint  the 
children  with  the  vastness  of  the  system  to  which  our  own 
wonderful  world  belongs,  and  to  show  them  that  it  is  be- 
cause of  the  power  of  God's  spirit  dwelling  in  each  one  of 
us  that  the  truths  about  these  worlds  beyond  us  have 
been  revealed. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

The  teacher  should  be  prepared  with  some  known 
distances  to  be  used  as  an  illustration  of  the  different 
measurements  given.     If  possible  show  the  children  how 

306 


GOD'S   GIFT   OF   SUNLIGHT  307 

an  opera  glass  is  constructed,  how  the  lenses  are  inserted 
in  the  tube,  the  convex  lens  at  the  back  and  the  eye-piece 
at  the  front.  The  opera  glass  is  the  same  form  of  tele- 
scope that  was  used  by  Galileo. 

The  children  should  be  made  to  realize  as  much  as 
possible  the  immensity  of  space  which  the  telescope  has 
opened  up  to  us;  and  the  knowledge  that  the  prisms  have 
enabled  us  to  obtain  of  those  other  vast  suns  that  appear 
to  us  as  points  of  light. 

Hand  Work 

If  possible,  have  the  pupils  study  light  through  a  prism 
before  attempting  to  do  the  work  asked  for  on  the  leaflet. 

Interest  in  the  Bible  passages  about  the  sun  may  be 
aroused  in  class.  Remind  the  children  of  certain  inci- 
dents and  verses  they  know  already  which  mention  the 
sun:  (1)  in  the  story  of  creation,  (2)  in  the  parable  of 
the  sower,  and  (3)  in  the  story  of  the  transfiguration. 
Do  they  know  where  to  find  these  in  the  Bible,  and  how 
to  write  the  abbreviations  for  the  books,  and  the  chapter 
and  verse  when  found  ?  A  little  class  teaching  and  prac- 
tice on  this  use  of  the  Bible  may  be  needed.  Then  the 
pupils  may  like  to  look  through  a  single  book,  like  Psalms 
or  Ecclesiastes  or  Revelation,  to  find  how  many  times  the 
sun  is  there  mentioned. 

OPENING    TALK 

Shall  we  repeat  together  the  memory  verse  for  this 
lesson  ?  A  glory  indeed  is  the  bright  shining  of  all  these 
heavenly  bodies.  Let  us  name  them  again  (sun,  moon, 
stars).  Which  is  nearest  our  earth?  Which  gives  us 
the  most  heat?  The  most  light?  Our  story  to-day  will 
tell  you  about  God's  gift  of  sunlight. 


GOD'S  GIFT  OF  SUNLIGHT 

Do  you  remember  what  a  great  change  came  over 
our  earth  when  at  last  the  sun  pierced  the  thick  fog 
and  began  to  shine  directly  upon  it?  What  is  the 
sun,  that  it  should  have  made  so  much  difference  in 
the  condition  of  the  earth's  surface?  What  does  it 
still  do  for  our  world? 

The  first  people  who  lived  on  the  earth  must  have 
noticed  some  of  the  things  we  see:  that  when  the 
sun  shines,  its  beams  are  warm,  even  hot  in  summer; 
that  night  comes  when  the  sun  disappears  below 
the  horizon,  and  that  the  night  is  cooler  than  the 
day. 

They  noticed,  too,  that  the  sun  must  be  far  away, 
because  it  was  beyond  the  clouds,  which  seemed 
quite  far  off  themselves.  In  time  they  observed 
that  the  sun  seemed  to  change  its  course  at  different 
seasons,  sometimes  climbing  high  up  in  the  sky  and 
pouring  down  hot  rays,  sometimes  going  much  lower 
and  sending  dow^n  slanting  rays  that  seemed  to 
warm  the  earth  very  little.  Probably  it  took  a  long 
time  for  those  early  men  to  see  the  relation  between 
summer's  heat  and  winter's  cold,  and  the  position 
of  the  sun  in  the  sky.  They  became  used  to  the 
changes  and  took  them  for  granted,  just  as  you 
children  do. 

But  there  came  a  time,  as  it  comes  to  you,  when 

308 


GOD'S   GIFT  OF  SUNLIGHT  300 

they  began  to  ask  questions  about  these  changes 
and  what  the  sun  had  to  do  with  them.  You  can 
ask  some  one  who  knows,  but  they  could  not. 
They  had  to  think  out  answers  for  themselves. 

Many  long  ages  it  has  taken  men  to  answer  these 
questions.  They  have  felt  their  way  along,  making 
many  mistakes,  yet  always  coming  nearer  and 
nearer  to  the  truth;  for  was  not  the  spirit  of  God 
leading  them  on? 

The  thinkers  came  to  beheve  at  last  that  the 
earth  was  round  like  a  ball,  but  it  was  centuries 
before  a  daring  Portuguese  mariner  started  out  to 
sail  entirely  around  our  globe.  One  ship  of  the  ex- 
pedition succeeded  in  sailing  around  and  coming 
back  to  port.  Then  people  knew  that,  indeed,  the 
earth  must  be  round. 

''If  the  earth  is  round  like  a  ball,  the  other 
heavenly  bodies  must  be  round  also,"  said  the 
thinkers.  But,  until  Galileo  made  his  telescope,  no 
one  could  prove  it.  When  he  looked  at  the  moon 
through  the  leaden  tube  in  which  he  had  placed  the 
two  pieces  of  lens-shaped  glass  that  he  had  made,  he 
could  see  that  it  really  was  round.  With  larger  and 
larger  telescopes  the  men  who  have  searched  the 
starry  sky  have  discovered  many  wonders  in  the 
universe.  Do  you  think  those  searchers  of  the  sky 
were  eager  to  find  out  about  the  sun,  what  it  really 
is,  what  makes  its  light  and  heat,  and  how  far  away 
it  is?  Indeed,  many  men  have  spent  their  lives  trying 
to  learn  more  and  more  about  the  great  orb  upon 
which  the  world  itself  and  everything  on  it  depends. 

You  shall  hear  some  of  the  truths  that  they  have 


310  THE  COMING   OF   MAN 

learned.  You  would  not  understand  it  all  —  none 
but  the  great  thinkers  themselves  can  do  that  — 
but  even  a  part  of  what  they  have  discovered  is  a 
wonderful  story. 

This,  then,  is  the  story  of  the  sun. 

It  is  an  immense  ball  of  glowing  Ught,  so  large  that 
we  cannot  picture  to  ourselves  its  size,  and  so  far 
away  that  we  can  hardly  imagine  its  distance,  for 
there  is  nothing  upon  the  earth  with  which  to  com- 
pare it.  It  may  help  us  to  get  an  idea  of  its  distance 
to  think  how  long  it  would  take  one  of  our  fastest 
express  trains  to  get  there  —  those  trains  that  take 
away  your  breath  when  they  dash  by  you. 

It  would  take  —  now  put  on  your  thinking  caps  — 
it  would  take  about  one  hundred  and  seventy-eight 
years  for  that  express  train  to  get  to  the  sun,  going 
straight  on  and  never  stopping  an  instant.  That  is 
twice  as  long  as  a  very  old  man  lives.  That  same 
train,  traveling  at  the  same  rate  of  speed,  could  go 
around  the  equator  of  the  earth,  which  is  its  largest 
part,  in  seventeen  days. 

Just  think  of  it !  To  be  only  seventeen  days  going 
around  our  great  world,  but  one  hundred  and  seventy- 
eight  years  on  a  journey  to  the  sun! 

Can  you  think  how  far  that  would  be?  Or,  can 
you  think  how  much  larger  the  sun  is  than  our  world, 
when  you  hear  that  this  sixty-mile-an-hour  express 
train  would  require  five  years  to  go  around  the  sun?  ^ 
There  is  a  great  difference  between  seventeen  days 
and  five  years.  Why,  3^ou  are  only  about  twice 
five  years  old,  and  it  is  a  long  time  since  you  were  a 

1  Figures  given  by  Dolmage. 


OOD'S  GIFT  OF  SUNLIGHT  311 

Imby;  but  seventeen  days  go  by  very  quickly,  they 
are  even  fewer  than  the  days  between  Thanksgiving 
and  Christmas.  ^      ^ 

To  this  immense  globe,  the  sun,  that  is  so  far  away, 
we  owe  all  cm-  light  and  heat.  "How  can  the  light 
and  heat  reach  us  when  they  come  so  great  a  dis- 
tance?" you  ask. 

Ah!  that  we  do  not  know, -it  is  still  a  mystery.  It 
IS  one  of  God's  laws  that  we  have  not  yet  discovered. 
Men  have  a  way  of  explaining  it  by  saying  that  it 
comes  on  waves  of  ether,  but  what  ether  is  no  one 
can  tell.  But  you  do  know  that  some  of  the  sun's 
heat  does  get  here,  if  you  remember  one  of  those  hot 
days  m  summer  when  the  sun  would  have  blistered 
your  skm  if  you  had  remained  out  in  it  long. 

Yet  they  tell  us  — those  searchers  of  the  sky  — 
that  "only  about  one-hundred-millionth  part  of  the 
sun's  heat  is  caught  by  all  the  planets  together"- 
and  there  are  seven  other  planets  besides  our  world' 
Now  that  is  something  that  our  minds  cannot  grasp 
at  all!    Try  to  picture  to  yourself  a  huge  bonfire  in 
an  open  field,  with  eight  children  scattered  here  and 
there  withm  a  circle  five  miles  across.    How  much 
of  the  heat  of  the  bonfire  would  each  of  you  children 
receive?    The  one  nearest  the  fire  would  feel  its  heat 
the  most.     The  child  who  was  one-fifth  of  a  mile 
away  would  seem  to  get  but  little  of  its  heat   yet 
that  child  would  represent  the  earth's  distance  from 
the  sun.    It  is  quite  easy  to  understand,  then,  that 
the  heat  which  comes  from  the  sun  is  very  much 
greater  than  the  heat  which  comes  from  any  fire 
that  we  could  possibly  make. 


312  THE  COMING   OF  MAN 

As  for  the  light  we  receive  from  it,  who  can  ever 
look  at  the  sun  when  it  is  shining  brightly  in  the  sky? 
Have  you  noticed  how  feeble  and  dull  even  the 
brightest  electric  lights  look  in  bright  daylight? 

Now  the  heat  and  the  light  that  come  to  us  from 
the  sun  are  the  very  things  upon  which  the  whole 
life  of  the  world  depends;  yet  what  causes  this  light 
and  heat  has  been  a  study  to  many  great  men. 
Wonderful  inventions  they  have  made,  trying  to 
find  out,  if  possible,  what  is  in  the  light  of  the  sun, 
and  much  has  been  already  learned  about  the 
quality  of  that  light,  and  about  the  sun  from  which 
it  comes. 

You  know  what  a  rainbow  is,  for  you  have  been 
taught  at  school.  It  is  the  beautiful,  white  light  of 
the  sun  divided  into  its  seven  principal  parts  by  the 
drops  of  falling  rain.  You  can  divide  a  sunbeam 
into  its  seven  rainbow  colors  yourself  with  a  prism 
of  glass. 

What  a  simple-looking  object  a  three-sided  piece 
of  glass  is,  yet  with  that  simple  device  men  have 
discovered  a  great  thing,  —  that  the  white  light  of 
the  sun  is  made  up  of  the  seven  brilliant  colors  that 
we  see  in  the  rainbow. 

Men  have  discovered  also  by  means  of  these 
prisms  of  what  the  sun  is  composed,  what  makes 
its  heat  and  its  light,  and  even  which  side  of  the 
sun  is  turning  toward  us.  They  tell  us  that  the  sun 
is  an  immense  ball  of  burning  gases,  and  what  those 
gases  are.  For  by  a  combination  of  prisms  they 
spread  out  a  beam  of  white  light  into  a  band  of 
colored  light  crossed  by  dark  lines.    This  they  call 


GOD'S   GIFT   OF  SUNLIGHT  313 

the  solar  spectrum.  Then  they  burn  the  different 
minerals  which  make  up  our  earth,  and  taking  the 
spectrum  of  these  and  of  different  gases  have  com- 
pared it  with  that  of  the  sun.  In  this  way  they 
found  that  the  sun  contains  some  of  the  same  metals 
and  gases,  such  as  iron,  copper,  platinum  and  hy- 
drogen, that  we  know  on  our  earth. 

In  the  same  way,  by  a  combination  of  glass  prisms, 
they  have  made  the  light  that  comes  from  all  those 
distant  stars  resolve  itself,  and  tell  us  of  what  they 
are  made.  A  great  secret  those  stars  have  given 
up,  —  those  stars  so  much  farther  away  from  us 
than  even  our  own  sun.  It  is  nothing  less  than  that 
they  themselves  are  suns,  and  that  our  sun  is  a 
star! 

Just  with  glass,  which  is  made  from  such  a  com- 
mon thing  as  sand,  have  these  wonders  been  dis- 
covered. But  the  hand  of  man  first  shaped  the 
glass,  and  the  thought  of  those  who  searched  deeply 
and  reverently  into  nature's  secrets  helped  to  ex- 
plain what  was  seen. 

It  is  by  the  eager  search,  continued  through  cen- 
turies, that  people  have  learned  about  this  vast  uni- 
verse of  which  our  world  is  a  part.  And  all  that  we 
learn  makes  us  more  reverent,  more  willing  to  trust 
God,  more  eager  to  learn  His  real  purpose  for  our 
lives. 


LESSON   38 
THE   SOLAR   SYSTEM 

MEMORY  VERSE 

When  I  consider  thy  heavens,  the  work  of  thy  fingers, 
The  moon  and  the  stars,  which  thou  hast  ordained, 
What  is  man,  that  thou  art  mindful  of  him^i* 
And  the  son  of  man,  that  thou  visitest  him? 

Ps.  8:3,  4 

The  Purpose 

The  religious  lesson  to  be  given  from  this  story  of  the 
solar  system  is  that  the  children  of  God  should  have  no 
fear  or  dread  of  the  forces  of  nature.  When  we  seek  to 
learn  the  truth  about  these  forces  we  are  set  free  from  the 
fears  that  ignorance  causes. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

Talk  of  the  members  of  our  solar  system  as  near 
neighbors  in  the  sky.  The  children  will  then  begin  to  have 
a  feeling  for  the  friendly  stars  which  may  be  carried  over 
in  the  next  lesson  to  the  more  remote  fixed  stars  or  suns. 

Use  Bible  references  like  Ps.  19:  1  ff.  and  the  memory- 
verse  to  show  how  even  in  remote  times  men  were  im- 
pressed with  the  wonder  of  the  heavens  and  moved  to 
worship  at  sight  of  them. 

Hand  Work 

The  teacher  who  has  planned  in  advance  may  direct 
the  children's  observations  of  the  moon  for  a  month  be- 

314 


THE   SOLAR   SYSTEM  315 

fore  the  work  required  on  the  leaflet  is  done.  It  will  not 
be  necessary  to  tell  them  this  lesson  story  before  they 
make  their  observations. 


OPENING   TALK 

How  would  you  like  to  live  on  a  star?  Well,  you  do 
live  on  one,  the  kind  of  star  called  a  planet.  What  other 
stars  there  are  like  ours,  all  part  of  the  sun's  family,  and 
how  the  moon  belongs  especially  to  our  star  the  earth, 
you  shall  hear  to-day. 


THE   SOLAR   SYSTEM 

Long  ago  Syrian  shepherds,  keeping  watch  over 
their  sheep  in  the  quiet  of  the  night,  used  to  gaze  at 
the  myriads  of  stars  that  twinkled  down  upon  them 
with  a  friendly  light.  They  loved  these  stars  as  if 
they  were  friends,  for  they  were  the  only  companions 
the  lonely  shepherds  had  during  those  long,  dark 
nights.  They  had  noticed  the  way  the  stars  are 
grouped  in  constellations,  and  they  watched  from 
night  to  night  to  see  when  the  same  group  of  stars 
would  come  above  the  horizon  and  swing  up  into  the 
sky.  To  some  of  the  brightest  stars  they  gave  names, 
and  they  learned  just  when  and  where  to  look  for 
them,  and  for  the  constellations  of  which  they  made 
a  part. 

Among  the  brighter  stars  they  had  observed  some 
that  were  not  always  to  be  found  when  looked  for. 
These  changed  their  places  from  time  to  time,  and 
did  not  seem  to  stay  long  with  the  same  set  of  com- 
panion stars.  So  they  called  them  planets,  which 
meant  wanderers. 

For  a  long  time  men  did  not  know  what  the  planets 
were,  or  why  they  acted  in  such  a  different  way  from 
the  other  stars.  Still  less  did  they  suspect  that  our 
earth,  on  which  we  live,  is  just  another  one  of  these 
planets.  But  we  know  now  that  the  planets  are 
worlds,  as  is  our  earth,  and  shine  by  reflected  hght  like 

316 


THE  SOLAR  SYSTEM  317 

the  moon;  while  the  real  stars  are  suns,  shining  by 
their  own  glowing  light. 

These  worlds,  or  planets,  all  revolve  around  the 
sun,  and  from  the  sun  they  borrow  the  light  with 
which  they  shine.  They  make  up  a  sort  of  family 
which  we  call  the  solar  system.  The  sun  is  in  the 
center  and  around  it  revolve  the  eight  planets. 
Mercury  comes  first,  almost  hidden  by  the  sun;  then 
Venus,  like  a  great  lamp  hung  in  the  sky.  This  is  the 
beautiful  evening  star  that  you  sometimes  see  low 
down  in  the  west  after  the  sun  goes  down.  Then 
part  of  the  year  it  is  the  morning  star,  and  shines  in 
the  east  before  the  sun  rises.  Our  earth  comes  next, 
carrying  the  moon  with  it  in  its  journey  round  the  sun. 
Then,  in  order,  are  the  red  planet  Mars,  the  splendid 
Jupiter,  and  Saturn,  which  shines  with  a  yellow  light. 
Then  comes  Uranus,  quite  lost  among  the  smaller 
stars,  and  last  of  all  Neptune,  not  to  be  seen  at  all 
excepting  with  a  telescope. 

All  the  planets  except  Mercury  and  Venus  are 
known  to  have  moons.  Could  you  think  what  our 
sky  would  look  like  if  there  were  eight  moons  to  be 
seen  at  night?  The  eight  moons  that  both  Jupiter 
and  Saturn  have,  or  the  four  that  go  around  Uranus, 
would  make  our  midnight  sky  almost  as  bright  as 
day.  Even  the  two  moons  of  Mars  would  seem  quite 
a  sight  to  our  eyes,  especially  since  one  of  them  rises 
in  the  west  and  crosses  the  sky  in  just  the  opposite 
direction  from  all  the  stars  and  the  other  moon. 

But  there  are  stranger  things  to  be  seen  upon  these 
planets  than  just  a  moon  seeming  to  go  the  wrong 
way,  for  Saturn  is  surrounded  by  three  rings.    That 


318  THE   COMING   OF   MAN 

is  a  thing  so  singular  that  we  are  at  a  loss  to  imagine 
how  our  sky  would  look  if  those  three  great  rings  be- 
longed to  our  world. 

Jupiter,  the  largest  of  all  the  planets,  is  surrounded 
by  a  thick,  dense  fog.  It  is  warm,  quite  warm,  by  its 
own  heat,  as  if  it  were  now  going  through  the  same 
changes  that  our  earth  went  through  when  it,  too, 
was  so  warm  that  the  dense  fog  lay  close  and  heavy 
all  about  it.  It  is  partly  from  what  they  see  of  these 
other  worlds,  that  the  searchers  after  truth  can  tell 
us  what  our  world  is  like.  Is  it  not  strange  that 
we  can  look  up  into  the  sky  and  learn  what  our 
world  reaUy  is,  and  see  other  planets  going  through 
the  same  stages  that  our  earth  passes  through?  The 
wonderful  telescopes  through  which  they  look,  the 
carefulness  with  which  the  scholars  observe,  and 
the  wisdom  with  which  they  think  upon  those  things 
have  all  brought  us  nearer  and  nearer  to  some  of  the 
great  truths  of  God's  universe. 

Supposing,  now,  that  some  one  living  on  one  of  the 
planets  could  look  at  our  earth,  what  would  he  see? 
If  he  were  as  far  away  as  Venus  he  would  see  a 
steadily  shining  star  like  those  we  call  the  planets. 
If  he  were  upon  the  surface  of  the  moon  he  would  see 
a  glorious  orb  which  would  flood  the  moon  with  a 
silvery  light  much  brighter  than  that  the  moon  gives 
us.  When  our  sky  was  clear  and  the  sun  was  shining 
brightly  upon  the  earth,  that  ^^ someone"  on  the 
moon  could  see  the  markings  of  our  continents  as 
plainly  as  we  see  the  markings  on  the  face  of  the 
moon. 

While  the  moon's  face  is  always  bright  to  us  unless 


THE   SOLAR  SYSTEM  319 

our  clouds  hide  it,  the  moon  has  no  clouds  in  its  sky, 
no  atmosphere  for  them  to  float  in,  no  water  upon  its 
surface  to  make  them.  The  moon  is  an  old  world.  Its 
face  is  wrinkled  and  marked  with  many  mountains, 
all  of  them  sharp  and  ragged.  There  is  no  running 
water  to  smooth  the  sharply  wrinkled  surface;  no 
trees  or  shrubs  to  make  it  beautiful;  no  air  to  soften 
all  the  outlines  and  temper  the  fierce  glare  of  the  sun, 
which  shines  steadily  upon  it. 

Yet  once,  they  tell  us,  there  was  water  upon  the 
moon,  for  the  dried-up  seas  have  left  their  marks. 
Those  are  what  make  the  pictures  that  we  see  in  the 
moon.  Some  see  a  man's  face;  some,  a  man  shooting; 
and  some,  the  face  of  a  woman  with  hair  rippling  over 
her  shoulders.  But  when  we  look  through  a  telescope 
or  even  through  an  opera  glass,  the  man's  face  and 
all  the  other  pictures  are  seen  no  more.  We  see  in- 
stead vast  empty  beds  of  dried-up  oceans  and  the 
peaks  of  mountains  scattered  over  the  surface.  Dead 
volcanoes  we  believe  these  to  be,  but  far  larger  and 
higher  than  any  volcanoes  that  we  have  on  our  earth. 

The  moon  is  our  nearest  neighbor  among  all  the 
heavenly  bodies.  It  is  called  our  satellite,  because  it 
revolves  around  the  earth  while  the  earth  revolves 
around  the  sun. 

Besides  the  planets,  which,  with  their  satellites  or 
moons,  revolve  in  regular  order  around  the  sun, 
there  are  those  wonderful  objects  that  we  call  comets. 
These  also  travel  about  the  sun.  Did  you  ever  see  a 
picture  of  a  comet?  It  is  like  a  star  with  a  long, 
sweeping  tail  of  light.  The  larger  comets  do  not 
often  visit  us,  but  when  they  do  come  they  make  a 


320  THE  COMING   OF  MAN 

marvelous  spectacle  in  the  sky.  Sometimes  the  tail 
is  so  long  that  it  reaches  one  quarter  of  the  way 
across  the  heavens. 

These  wonderful  visitors  to  our  skies  move  in 
regular  orbits  of  their  own.  They  come  toward  the 
sun  from  far  away,  turn  around  it,  and  then  go  off 
to  a  distance  so  great  that  we  cannot  follow  them 
with  the  strongest  telescope. 

People  used  to  be  very  much  frightened  at  the 
sight  of  a  comet.  They  did  not  understand  its 
appearance,  and  were  alarmed  by  it  just  as  they  were 
when  the  moon  went  between  the  sun  and  the  earth 
and  cut  off  the  sun's  light  from  the  earth,  causing  an 
eclipse.  These  things  frightened  them  because  they 
did  not  form  a  part  of  the  regular  changes  in  nature 
that  men  had  become  accustomed  to,  and  they  did 
not  understand  what  caused  them.  Although  we  do 
not  know  what  the  comets  are  or  where  they  come 
from,  our  searchers  after  truth  have  found  that  they 
obey  a  law,  as  does  everything  else  in  the  whole  uni- 
verse, and  they  have  figured  out  the  path  that  many 
of  these  comets  follow. 

For  a  longer  time,  however,  men  have  known  what 
makes  an  eclipse.  When  there  is  a  full  moon  it  some- 
times happens  that  the  earth  gets  so  exactly  between 
it  and  the  sun  that  the  shadow  of  the  earth  falls  upon 
it.  There  is  always  a  great  shadow  cast  by  the  earth, 
but  it  is  not  often  that  there  is  anything  for  it  to  fall 
upon.  So,  when  the  moon  gets  in  its  way  the  circular 
shadow  that  the  earth  makes  goes  across  the  moon's 
face.  Sometimes  it  only  seems  to  take  out  a  bite,  but 
at  other  times  it  covers  the  moon's  face  entirely,  and 


THE  SOLAR  SYSTEM  321 

we  have  a  total  eclipse  of  the  moon.  Those  ancient 
people  who  used  to  be  so  alarmed  had  never  thought 
of  a  shadow  for  the  earth,  it  seems. 

An  eclipse  of  the  sun  happens  when  the  moon,  in 
revolving  about  the  earth,  goes  directly  between  the 
sun  and  the  earth,  and  when  the  sun  is  entirely 
covered  by  the  moon  it  is  called  a  total  eclipse. 

A  total  eclipse  of  the  sun  is  an  awesome  event,  and 
one  that  would  alarm  those  earlier  peoples  who 
could  not  think  what  would  cause  it;  but  no  one  is 
alarmed  now,  because  the  reason  of  the  eclipse  is 
known.  The  men  who  study  about  the  laws  of  God's 
universe  can  tell,  long  before  it  happens,  just  when  an 
eclipse  will  come,  even  to  the  exact  second;  and  they 
print  all  this  in  almanacs  so  we  can  know  about  it 
each  year. 

No  one  fears  a  thing  when  he  knows  that  it  is  pro- 
duced by  a  natural  cause.  We  no  longer  dread  the 
magnificent  comets.  Though  they  fill  us  with  awe, 
as  the  marvelous  works  of  God  always  must  do,  they 
fill  us  with  no  dread.  Knowing  about  them  takes 
away  our  fear.  That  is  what  Jesus  meant  when  he 
said,  ''Ye  shall  know  the  truth  and  the  truth  shall 
make  ye  free.'' 


LESSON  39. 
THE   STARS 

MEMORY  VERSES 

The  heavens  declare  the  glory  of  God: 
And  the  firmament  showeth  His  handiwork. 
Day  mito  day  uttereth  speech, 
And  night  unto  night  showeth  knowledge. 

Ps.  19:  1,  2 

The  voice  that  rolls  the  stars  along 
Speaks  also  unto  thee. 

Adapted  from  Isaac  Walts 

The  Purpose 

This  lesson  on  the  stars  is  given  in  the  hope  that  the 
wonder  of  the  stellar  universe  may  touch  the  hearts  of 
the  children  and  live  with  them  as  a  friendly  interest  all 
their  lives.  There  is  no  reason  why  we  should  not  have 
the  same  friendliness  toward  those  constant  companions 
of  the  night  as  did  the  Syrian  shepherds  of  old.  Such  a 
friendliness  developed  in  childhood  will  help  to  keep  the 
heart  in  tune  with  the  harmony  of  nature  throughout  life. 

The  special  religious  lesson  is  contained  in  the  memory 
verses.  After  these  lessons  on  the  immensity  and  grandeur 
of  space,  it  is  well  that  the  children  should  be  reminded 
that  God  dwells  also  within  their  own  hearts. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

There  are  so  many  interesting  and  amazing  facts 
about  the  stars,  that  it  has  been  difficult  to  decide  just 
which  should  be  chosen  for  this  necessarily  short  story, 

322 


THE   STARS  323 

but  it  is  hoped  that  enough  interest  may  be  aroused  to 
make  the  children  want  to  learn  more  of  the  stars  and 
constellations  than  can  be  described  here.  The  teacher 
should  urge  this,  encouraging  the  children  to  choose  cer- 
tain stars  as  they  did  trees,  to  watch  and  study  and  have 
for  friends. 

If  it  can  \)e  instilled  into  the  minds  of  these  growing 
children  that  the  vastness  of  the  universe  only  brings 
God  nearer  to  them,  none  of  these  lessons  will  have  been 
in  vain. 

A  chart  of  the  sky  showing  more  of  the  constellations 
than  are  given  in  the  handwork  would  give  an  added 
interest  to  the  lesson.  The  stars  which  are  in  the  summer 
sky  are  not  so  brilliant  as  those  in  the  winter  heavens, 
but  the  long  warm  evenings  offer  better  conditions  for 
their  observation.  The  Big  Dipper,  Cassiopeia's  Chair, 
and  the  Milky  Way  can  all  be  seen  at  the  season  when  this 
lesson  is  taught,  and  the  chart  on  the  leaflet  will  help  the 
children  to  locate  them. 

OPENING   TALK 

Have  you  seen  the  moon  during  last  month?  Tell 
me  how  it  looked,  and  show  me  what  you  have  written 
about  it  on  your  leaflet.  Have  any  of  you  remembered 
the  names  of  the  planets  in  our  solar  system?  Let  us  see 
if  we  can  name  them  all  together,  beginning  with  the  one 
nearest  the  sun,  and  be  sure  not  to  leave  out  our  earth! 
(Mercury,  Venus,  the  Earth,  Mars,  Jupiter,  Saturn, 
Uranus,  Neptune.) 

You  have  learned  something  about  the  sun,  the  planets 
and  their  satellites,  comets,  and  our  own  moon;  now  you 
shall  hear  the  story  of  the  stars. 


THE   STARS 

On  bright,  sunny  days,  as  we  look  up  and  up  into 
the  deep  blue  sky,  it  seems  as  if  we  could  see  much 
farther  than  we  can  at  night,  when  the  darkness 
shuts  in  around  us;  yet  in  the  depths  of  that  blue 
sky  there  is  no  sign  of  a  star.  We  know  that  stars 
are  there,  because  when  we  look  through  a  telescope 
or  a  long,  narrow  tube  we  can  see  them.  Yet  we 
do  not  see  the  stars  by  day,  because  the  rays  of  the 
sun  are  so  bright  that  they  flood  the  sky  with  light. 
Only  by  cutting  off  the  sun's  rays  by  means  of  the 
long,  narrow  tube  can  the  feebler  light  of  the  stars 
and  planets  reach  our  eyes.  But  just  as  soon  as  the 
sun  has  set  and  its  light  is  beginning  to  fade  away, 
from  out  the  darkening  sky  the  stars  appear  one 
by  one. 

Sometimes  they  seem  very  far  away;  sometimes, 
when  the  air  is  clear,  as  on  the  top  of  a  high  mountain, 
the  stars  seem  very  near,  —  just  above  the  tree- 
tops.  But  they  are,  in  truth,  so  many  billion  miles 
away  that  the  mind  cannot  grasp  the  distance.  It 
is  of  no  use  to  try  to  tell  you  how  long  it  would  take 
an  express  train  to  reach  one  of  those  distant  stars, 
for  the  number  of  years  would  be  so- great  that  it 
would  not  mean  anything  to  you. 

Many  of  the  stars  seem  grouped  in  our  sky  as  if 
they  belonged  together.     But  those  stars  are  not 

324 


THE   STARS  325 

companions  at  all;  they  only  seem  so  to  us,  because 
we  see  them  from  so  great  a  distance.  In  reality 
there  are  vast  spaces  between  them.  They  are  not 
fixed  stars,  either,  as  the  ancients  believed  them  to 
be,  and  as  we  still  call  them.  Each  one  is  moving 
through  space  at  an  incredible  speed,  and  so,  they 
tell  us,  is  our  own  sun. 

Where  are  they  going?  No  one  knows.  That  is 
another  of  thos6  secrets  which  in  time  the  searchers 
after  truth  may  discover  and  so  be  able  to  reveal 
to  us  more  of  God's  universe.  Yet  we  believe  that 
they  are  not  moving  hither  and  thither  without  any 
law  or  order,  because  we  have  learned  enough  about 
God's  universe  to  know  that  nothing  is  without  law 
and  order,  be  it  a  speck  of  dust  or  a  stupendous  sun. 
So  we  feel  sure  that  these  millions  of  suns  are  moving 
through  space  in  some  such  regular  order  as  that 
in  which  the  planets  and  the  comets  in  our  solar 
system  move. 

In  the  vast  space,  without  beginning  and  without 
end,  which  we  call  the  universe  there  are  millions 
and  millions  of  suns,  each  revolving  upon  its  own 
axis  as  our  sun  revolves,  and  each  traveling  in  its 
own  path.  Around  many  of  these  suns,  perhaps 
all,  swing  worlds  or  planets,  each  sun  with  its  worlds 
forming  a  group  in  the  vast  space  of  the  universe. 

Shut  your  eyes  and  think  of  the  sky  at  night  when 
all  the  stars  are  shining.  Can  you  see  the  sparkling 
stars  looking  as  you  saw  them  last  night  or  the 
night  before? 

Can  you  imagine,  too,  our  sun  traveling  along 
through  space  with  its  eight  planets  revolving  about 


326  THE   COMING   OF   MAN 

it,  and  all  their  moons  about  them,  with  the  comets 
coming  from  we  know  not  whence,  and  after  tm*n- 
ing  about  the  sun  going  back  again  to  we  know 
not  where?  If  you  can  do  this,  you  will  have  a  pic- 
ture of  our  solar  system  as  the  men  we  have  called 
''the  searchers  of  the  sky"  see  it.  They  think  of 
each  star  in  the  sky  as  the  center  of  a  system  like 
ours,  moving  as  our  sun  moves.  Is  it  not  a  vast  and 
wonderful  universe  in  which  we  live? 

There  is  one  star,  the  light  of  which  fades  and  then 
grows  bright  again.  The  Arabs  long  ago  noticed 
this,  and  named  the  star  Algol,  or  the  demon,  be- 
cause it  seemed  to  wink  at  them.  Now  our  as- 
tronomers have  found  that  that  winking  star  is  a 
great  sun,  having  a  dark  companion  which  revolves 
around  it,  which  cuts  off  part  of  its  light  from  us. 
Is  that  dark  companion  a  world,  moving  around 
the  sun  Algol?  They  think  it  is.  So  when  Algol 
seems  to  wink  we  are  really  seeing  an  eclipse  of  a 
sun  billions  and  billions  of  miles  away. 

Among  the  stars  are  many  that  are  double;  that 
is,  instead  of  having  a  dark  companion  revolving 
around  them,  as  our  world  revolves  around  the  sun, 
two  brilliant  suns  revolve  around  each  other.  What 
would  we  do  in  summer  if  we  had  two  suns  in  the 
sky  at  once;  or  if  one  was  in  the  sky  by  day  and  one 
by  night?  We  should  have  no  night  then,  only  a 
short  twilight  twice  a  day;  and  how  should  we  get 
any  rest  or  sleep? 

There  is  one  of  these  star  systems  that  to  the 
naked  eye  looks  like  a  single  star,  but  when  seen 
through  a  telescope  it  becomes  three  dazzUng  suns, — 


THE   STARS  327 

one  a  beautiful  blue,  one  a  brilliant  green  and  one 
a  glowing  yellow.  With  our  eyes  we  could  not  live 
upon  a  world  revolving  around  three  such  suns  as 
those,  could  we?  This  world  that  we  live  upon  with 
its  single  sun,  shedding  upon  us  its  pure,  white  hght, 
is  much  better  for  us,  —  indeed  it  is  the  only  world 
for  us,  made  as  we  are.  To  it  God  has  adapted  our 
bodies,  and  we  could  not  live  on  a  world  that  was 
quite  different  from  this  of  ours. 

Some  stars  shine  with  a  clear,  white  Hght,  like 
that  of  our  sun,  and  those,  they  tell  us,  are  all  about 
the  same  age.  Others  shine  with  a  steely  blue  Hght, 
and  those  are  younger  suns  than  ours,  while  others 
stiU  are  yellowish  or  a  dull  red.  Those  are  older 
than  our  sun.  Look  at  the  stars  on  the  next  clear 
night  and  see  if  you  can  find  one  that  shines  with  a 
reddish  light,  and  one  whose  hght  is  bluish,  and 
others  of  which  the  light  is  pure  white. 

The  brightest  and  the  largest  star  is  Su-ius,  or 
the  Dog  Star,  which  we  can  see  only  during  the 
winter  months.  This  star  shines  with  a  clear,  white 
light,  but  it  is  such  an  enormous  sun  that  the  light 
it  gives  out  is  more  than  forty  times  as  much  as 
that  shed  by  our  sun.  But  Snius  is  a  younger  sun 
than  ours,  and  in  the  ages  to  come  it  will  shrink  and 
give  less  light  and  heat,  for  suns  as  well  as  planets 
shrink  as  they  grow  older. 

Sirius  is  near  Orion,  the  most  brilliant  constella- 
tion, or  group  of  stars,  in  our  winter  sky.  Try  to  get 
some  one  to  point  it  out  to  you  next  winter,  and  to 
tell  you  the  story  the  Greeks  told  about  the  great 
hunter  Orion  with  his  dog  Sirius  following  him.    In 


328  THE   COMING   OF   MAN 

winter,  also,  you  will  see  a  pretty  little  star  cluster, 
called  the  Pleiades.  About  this  constellation,  too, 
the  Greeks  told  a  story  of  which  you  heard  in  the 
chapter  about  electricity;  for  these  are  the  seven 
sisters  of  Phaethon,  those  who  wept  the  amber  tears. 
The  Greeks  believed  that  the  gods  had  such  pity 
for  the  poor  weeping  sisters,  that  they  changed  them 
into  stars.  The  Hebrews  knew  and  loved  these 
stars,  and  wrote  about  them.  In  the  book  of  Job,  a 
part  of  our  Bible,  written  many  centuries  ago,  are 
these  lines: 

Canst  thou  bind  the  cluster  of  the  Pleiades, 
Or  loose  the  bands  of  Orion? 

You  need  not  wait  for  winter  to  see  the  Great 
Dipper.  It  is  always  in  the  northern  sky,  for  it 
never  sets.  Sometimes  it  is  upside  down,  and  some- 
times on  one  end  or  on  the  handle,  but  it  is  always 
there.  The  two  bright  stars  of  its  front  edge  point 
directly  toward  the  North  Star,  so  we  call  them  ''the 
Pointers,"  because  by  them  we  can  always  find  the 
North  Star. 

In  the  bend  of  the  handle  of  the  Dipper  is  a  beau- 
tiful double  star.  Some  persons  have  such  strong 
eyesight  that  they  can  see  that  it  is  double  without 
the  aid  of  an  opera  glass.  See  if  you  can  find  the 
star,  and  whether  it  appears  to  you  single  or  double. 

You  surely  know  that  gleaming  band  of  thickly 
clustered  stars  stretching  across  the  sky;  that  you 
can  always  find.  It  is  called  the  Milky  Way.  It 
is  made  up  of  multitudes  of  stars,  so  far  away  that 
we  cannot  see  them  separately.    Their  light  blends 


THE  STARS  329 

together,  making  what  looks  Uke  a  faint,  milky 
pathway  along  the  sky. 

When  we  learn  to  know  the  brighter  stars  and  the 
constellations,  they  become  our  friends  as  they 
have  been  the  friends  of  so  many  of  those  who  went 
before  us.  We  call  the  stars  by  name,  and  pick  out 
in  the  twinkling  mass  those  that  we  like  the  best, 
knowing  that  ages  and  ages  of  men,  women  and 
children  have  looked  upon  the  same  stars  and  have 
regarded  them  in  the  same  friendly  way. 

The  winking  Algol,  the  glorious  Sirius,  the  red 
Arcturus  and  the  bluish  Vega  have  been  named  and 
watched  by  people  for  countless  ages;  so  have  Orion, 
the  Pleiades,  the  Dipper,  the  Northern  Crown,  the 
Sickle,  and  all  the  other  sparkling  constellations. 

And  shall  they  not  speak  to  us,  those  giant  suns, 
rolling  through  endless  space  at  the  command  of 
God?  Let  them  say  to  us  that  the  all-powerful  God 
who  made  all  things  is  yet  our  Father  and  Friend. 


LESSON   40 
THE  TORCH  BEARERS 

MEMORY  VERSE 

For  the  invisible  things  of  him  since  the  creation  of  the  world 
are  clearly  seen,  being  perceived  through  the  things  that  are  made, 
even  his  everlasting  power  and  divinity. 

Rom.  1:  20 

The  Purpose 

The  intent  of  this  closing  lesson  is  evident.  The 
teacher  will  have  little  trouble  in  awakening  the  desire 
to  pass  on  the  torch  of  truth  with  its  light  undimmed. 
Let  the  story  make  its  own  appeal,  keeping  the  im- 
pression of  awe  and  reverence  over  this  universe  and  its 
Creator  to  the  end  of  the  course. 

Suggestions  for  the  Teacher 

A  brief  review  which  shall  bring  out  the  subjects  of 
the  four  sections  of  this  book  and  its  general  purpose  may 
seem  desirable  at  this  point.  If  so,  it  must  be  carefully 
planned  so  that  it  may  be  interesting  and  not  take  up 
too  much  time  from  the  last  brief  lesson  period  of  the 
course.  The  work  asked  for  on  the  leaflet  makes  such  a 
review. 

The  poem  printed  on  the  leaflet  should  be  read  in  class 
before  the  story  is  told. 

The  story  of  the  torch  bearers  should,  then,  be  given  as 
the  last  thing  in  the  lesson  period.  There  will  be  no  need 
to  emphasize  the  thought  of  the  responsibility  of  each  child 

330 


THE   TORCH   BEARERS  331 

to  carry  on  the  truth  and  let  its  Ught  shine  in  the  world. 
The  story  makes  the  point  clear,  and  by  its  illustrations 
puts  an  ideal  of  life  before  the  pupils. 

The  memory  verse  is  used  as  a  summary  of  the  re- 
ligious thought  and  ami  of  this  course  of  lessons.  Very 
exalted  it  is,  both  in  thought  and  expression,  but  it  will 
do  the  pupils  good  to  reach  up  toward  it  now,  and  to 
store  it  in  the  memory,  that  later  its  full  meaning  may 
come  to  them. 

OPENING   TALK 

We  have  talked  together  about  the  seeing  eyes  and  the 
seeing  mind.  Tell  me  some  of  the  things  our  eyes  were 
to  see  in  the  sky,  among  growing  things,  among  animals, 
among  the  rocks.  Did  we  study  anything  that  we  can- 
not see?  Electricity,  yes;  and  that  force  to  which  Sir 
Isaac  Newton  gave  a  name  —  gravitation  —  and  other 
forces  in  our  universe.  How  did  we  learn  to  know  these 
forces  if  we  could  not  see  them?  It  was  through  their 
effects,  through  the  things  we  can  see  and  touch. 

Now  we  think  when  we  come  together  here  of  the  One 
whom  none  of  us  can  ever  see  with  these  eyes  of  ours  as 
we  see  each  other.  But  there  is  a  way  in  which  we  may 
see  the  invisible  God.  Our  Bible  verse  tells  us:  "For 
the  invisible  things  of  Him  since  the  creation  of  the  world 
are  clearly  seen,  being  perceived  through  the  things  that 
are  made,  even  His  everlasting  power  and  divinity." 
(Rom.  1:20.) 

The  poem  on  our  leaflet  tells  us  the  same  thing  —  one 
of  the  loveliest  of  poems  for  a  child  to  learn.  Shall  we 
read  it  now?  Then  we  will  have  the  story  that  tells  us 
what  we  may  do  about  the  truth  which  has  been  dis- 
covered concerning  our  wonderful  world  and  the  dear 
God  whose  thought  has  created  it  all  through  the  ages. 


THE  TORCH  BEARERS 

In  days  gone  by  there  used  to  be  a  religious  festival 
in  which  the  children  took  a  part.  They  would  run 
with  hghted  torches,  each  guarding  his  own  torch 
most  carefully  as  he  ran,  to  keep  it  alight.  It  must 
have  been  a  pretty  sight  to  have  seen  those  chil- 
dren, in  their  short,  white  garments,  each  lighting 
his  torch  from  the  one  behind,  and  running  forward 
to  light  that  of  the  one  in  front;  then,  when  all 
were  lighted,  to  have  seen  them  run  on  in  a  long  line, 
eager  to  lay  their  still  burning  torches  at  the  altar 
of  the  goddess  in  whose  honor  the  festival  was  held. 

No  longer  do  children  run  in  this  festival  of  the 
torches;  no  longer  do  those  peoples  worship  their  gods 
and  goddesses  with  fire,  for  they  have  become  Chris- 
tians who  worship  God  ''in  spirit  and  in  truth."  But 
the  idea  of  the  lighted  torch  still  remains,  and  is  for 
us  a  symbol  of  the  reaching  upward  of  our  hearts  and 
of  our  thoughts. 

Fire  is  a  gift  of  God  to  our  world.  It  is  very  useful, 
as  we  know,  but  it  has  for  us  a  deep  meaning,  too. 
The  family  hearth  where  the  ancients  used  to  wor- 
ship their  household  gods,  and  where  the  fire  was 
never  allowed  to  go  out,  has  now  come  to  mean  to  us 
the  happy  tie  that  binds  a  family  together.  So,  too, 
the  lighted  torch  has  come  down  through  the  ages 
as  a  symbol  of  knowledge  and  wisdom. 

332 


THE   TORCH   BEARERS  333 

Boys  and  girls  are  still  torch  bearers  for  the  world. 
The  sacred  torch  each  carries  is  the  light  of  truth  and 
knowledge  which  the  mind  receives  from  those  who 
know.  You  who  have  studied  this  book  have  lighted 
your  torches  from  the  burning  thoughts  of  past  ages. 
What  people  worked  hard  to  discover  you  may  now 
learn  easily.  And  when  you  have  learned  and  are 
eager  to  know  more,  your  torch  is  ablaze. 

Then  you  want  both  to  keep  your  torch  alight,  and 
to  give  of  its  flame  to  others;  for  in  this  way  the  light 
of  truth  and  wisdom  is  carried  on  through  the  ages. 
If  the  first  man  who  learned  how  to  make  fire  had 
kept  the  knowledge  to  himself  and  had  not  shown 
others  how  to  make  it  too,  the  world  would  have  been 
much  longer  in  becoming  civilized. 

If  the  Phoenician  merchants  had  not  shown  the 
Greeks  and  the  Hebrews  how  to  make  an  alphabet, 
we  might  not  yet  know  how  to  read  or  write,  nor  how 
to  record  our  thoughts  in  books.  If  the  followers  of 
Jesus  had  not  gone  out  into  the  world,  carrying  the 
gospel  of  the  truth  he  taught,  we  might  never  have 
heard  his  message  nor  wanted  to  live  as  he  showed 
men  how  to  live. 

So  throughout  the  ages,  men,  women,  yes,  and 
children  too,  have  carried  the  torches  on  and  on, 
each  mind  lighted  by  the  thoughts  of  all  who  have 
gone  before;  and  we,  if  we  are  faithful,  must  carry 
on  the  flame  undimmed  to  light  the  torches  of 
future  generations. 

Now  this  power  of  the  mind  and  of  the  spirit  with 
which  God  has  endowed  His  children  is  the  most  mar- 
velous thing  in  the  whole  world,  —  much  more  mar- 


334  THE  COMING   OF  MAN 

velous  than  steam  or  electricity,  because  it  is  able  to 
discover  all  the  forces  and  the  materials  upon  the 
world,  how  to  use  them,  and  what  laws  govern:them. 
The  searchers  after  truth  who  discovered  great  laws 
of  the  universe,  or  who  found  the  way  to  harness 
steam  and  electricity  to  do  our  daily  work  for  us,  are 
not  the  only  ones  whose  torches  have  burned  so 
brightly  that  they  have  kindled  others.  For  Uttle 
things  count  in  this  wonder  world  in  which  we  live, 
and  many  a  one  has  seen  or  done  an  apparently 
simple  thing  that  has  carried  the  world  of  men  on  to 
better  ways  of  living. 

The  steam  rising  from  the  kettle  of  boiling  water 
was  of  no  significance  to  many  people,  but  it  meant 
vsomething  to  young  Watt,  who  saw  that  it  could  be 
successfully  harnessed  to  do  great  work.  The  fine 
white  grains  of  quartz  sand  upon  the  sea  beach 
seem  to  most  of  us  only  a  diiTerent  form  of  the  ground 
we  walk  upon ;  but  some  one  found  out  how  to  make 
glass  of  them,  and  others  learned  to  shape  the  glass 
into  lenses  for  the  telescopes,  by  means  of  which 
undreamed-of  truths  about  other  suns  and  worlds 
than  ours  have  been  found  and  proved. 

There  is  a  man  living  to-day  who  spends  all  his 
time  trying  to  make  our  flowers  and  fruits  and  vege- 
tables larger  and  of  better  quality.  When  Luther 
Burbank  produces  a  new  fruit,  combining  the  deli- 
cious flavor  of  one  with  the  larger  size  of  another,  is 
not  this  a  benefit  to  mankind?  He  says  that  everyone 
can  make  the  flowers  more  beautiful  if  they  will 
watch  the  bees  and  work  as  they  do.  He  himself  is 
showing  us  how.    When  he  discovers  a  way  to  make 


THE  TORCH   BEARERS  335 

the  spiny,  useless  desert  cactus  grow  without  spines, 
so  that  it  can  be  used  as  nourishing  food,  does  he  not 
keep  his  torch  burning  brightly,  and  pass  on  its  light 
to  others? 

Oh!  there  are  so  many,  many  ways  to  help  the 
world;  so  many,  many  ways  to  bless  mankind;  so 
many,  many  ways  to  learn  God's  laws. 

We  must  hold  our  torches  high  and  guard  the 
flames  carefully.  The  shame  would  be  far  greater 
for  us  should  our  torches  go  out,  than  it  was  for 
those  children  who  carried  real  ones.  They  were 
obliged  as  they  ran  to  guard  the  flames  against  the 
wind,  and  to  watch  most  carefully  lest  the  light 
should  blow  out. 

If  the  flame  of  the  torch  we  carry  dies  down  and 
goes  out,  it  is  because  we  neglect  it.  The  fire  is  ours, 
and  God,  the  giver,  watches  over  us  to  aid  us  in  our 
endeavor  to  lift  high  the  torch  of  true  knowledge  and 
wisdom. 

By  its  light  we  enter  into  the  mystery  and  the 
marvel  of  this  world  in  which  we  live.  By  its  light 
we  learn  to  ''think  God's  thoughts  after  him,"  as 
Kepler  said  when  he  studied  the  stars.  B}^  its  light 
we  find  the  true  pathway  of  life.  We  may,  if  we  are 
faithful,  be  of  those  who  carry  on,  undimmed,  this 
torch  of  truth,  so  that  its  light  shines  steadily  and 
grows  brighter  through  the  years,  to  liglit  the  lives  of 
all  who  live  in  God's  wonder  world. 

THE    END 


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